New Loan at NMWA! Kiki Smith’s “Mary Magdalene”
Posted by: Broad Strokes on: August 17, 2010
In recent years, no single Biblical figure has been reexamined and reinvented in popular culture and the mass imagination to the degree that Mary Magdalene—one of the most revered saints of Christianity—has been. Recognizable in tradition and art as the repentant prostitute who, in Luke 7:36-50, anointed the feet of Christ with ointment from an alabaster box and washed them with her hair and tears, Magdalene has received a makeover at the hands of skeptics and historians who have emphasized her importance as one of Christ’s most important female disciples.
Throughout the history of art, Mary Magdalene has been depicted in light of the many traditions attached to her Biblical persona:
The repentant sinner …
Marcantonio, “Mary Magdalene Bathing Christ’s Feet”, Engraving, 17th century
One of the few who remained with Christ during the crucifixion …
Giotto, “Noli me tangere” from the Scrovegni Chapel in Padua, Italy, c. 1305
The first person to encounter Jesus after the resurrection …
Giotto, “Noli me tangere” from the Scrovegni Chapel in Padua, Italy, c. 1305
The hermit, clothed in her own hair, who lived the remainder of her days in penance and solitude:
Donatello, "The Penitent Magdalene", c. 1453-55, Wood with polychromy and gold Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, Florence
Last week, the National Museum of Women in the Arts proudly installed Kiki Smith’s Mary Magdalene, 1994, in the second-floor sculpture gallery. On loan from a private collection in New York, Smith’s Magdalene follows the Medieval and Renaissance tradition of depicting Magdalene as the long-haired ascetic in her latter days. Painter, photographer, printmaker, and sculptor Kiki Smith is world-renown for figurative works that allude to the philosophical, social, and spiritual aspects of human nature.
Kiki Smith (American, b. 1954) "Mary Magdalene", 1994 Cast silicon bronze and
Raphael Sikorra is Curatorial Assistant at the National Museum of Women in the Arts.
August 24, 2010 at 6:57 pm
Of all the female characters in history, Magdalene holds me her captive. I went to Provance and traced her footsteps, landing in her cave where she lived for 30 years with only her long red hair to keep her warm in winter.
This statue is simply gorgeous and, actually the word gorgeous is almost too heavy threaded for her. It is truthful and worthy and I love it.
Should you like to read my 14 day trek to Chase the Magdalene, http://twopilgrims.typepad.com/two_pilgrims/
Please pass on my heartfelt appreciation to the artist. I wish I could see this in person.