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Pedestal

[Last modified: March, 24 2019 05:18 PM]

In the dim lit exhibit room of the UCL Art museum lies the bust of George Grote. He was one of the founding fathers of UCL. There is nothing remarkable about this carved block of marble, it is no different from the many marble busts you are likely to see in National Museum. As a matter of fact, marble busts are often tributes to ancient deities, elites and societies’ overachievers.

However, below the bust lies an olive green pedestal. Gold floral patterns were painted, and winged goddesses carved on its sides. It was designed by the famous Roccoan Architect Robert Adam. Suddenly the pedestal, simply an ornate wooden structure, presents a new focus on the statue. The combination of the physical elevation, partnering with craftsmanship and the reputation of the designer of the pedestal legitimize the bust. Is that combination symbiotic… or overshadowing?

“When placed on a pedestal, the statue a viewer has come to see is more like an actual person. It is granted greater respect – ‘più stimata et più riguardata'” 

Andrea Riccio (15th Century Florentine Sculptor)

Object details

Accession number: N/A

Materials: Wood & paint with gilding

Dimensions: 105 cm by 27.5 cm by 27.5 cm 

Source: UCL Art Museum. Designed by Robert Adam c.1785, donated to the University by the Art Fund in 1956

A striking illustration of the potential of pedestals is the lunar rock. You would not notice this little stone in a garden or in the forest. However, when displayed at the National Air and Space Museum, Washington DC (USA), it is raised on a pedestal, with a sign that authorizes visitors to “touch it with care”, and people queue for the chance to do so ! The way the object is put upfront, thanks to the pedestal, grants it an almost mystic status.

Lunar Touch Rock. (1971). [NASA sample 70215, 84.] Washington DC: National Air and Space Museum, Milestones of Flight gallery.

The pedestal is ornate and the viewer might look at the pedestal itself whereas it is meant to emphasise what it supports. A parallel can be drawn with cathedrals and churches. Early protestants have argued that catholic buildings bearing imposing decoration distract the worshipers from God. Hence protestants prefer plainly decorated churches.
The picture above is of the São Francisco Church, in Salvador da Bahia (Brazil). This baroque architectural masterpiece examplifies the igreja dourada (“golden church”) like no other. The pillars, walls, ceilings, vaults, columns, arches, in fact every inner surface is golden, covered by gilt woodwork art. These exuberant furnishings are typical of the first half of the 18th century and are supposed to reflect the power of God.

Convento e Igreja de São Francisco. (1755). Salvador, State of Bahia (Brazil).

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