Amarna Period

Museum Practicum: Journal Q&A, University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology (The Penn Museum)

Oktavia LaBarge, November 14, 2013

Title: Relief of Princess with an Earring

Year: Dynasty 18, Reign of Akhenaten (1353-1336 BCE)

Material: Limestone

Creator: Unknown

Collection: University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology: Amarna Collection

This is, “Relief of Princess with an Earring” from the Amarna period in Egypt.  The Amarna period occurred when Akhenaten became King and decided that instead of worshiping many gods, Egyptians would only worship one, Aten. During this period, the king changed his name from Amenhotep IV to Akhenaten to honor the god Aten.  Akhenaten instated many changes gradually during his reign to align himself with the god of Aten.  These changes included a change in the king’s position and in Egyptian art.  Prior to Akhenaten’s rule, there was this idea of dualism, specifically in art.  Dualism was the idea that two opposing things mutually exist.  Before the Amarna period, kings were depicted as extremely masculine, potent, the unifier, and the authority, where as, women were depicted as feminine and fertile figures. In order for Akhenaten to align himself closer to Aten who was considered both male and female, he to began to represent himself as both male and female. 

This object is extremely important to someone who is interested in Ancient Egypt.  During the Amarna period, many changes occurred that catch the attention of many peoples.  It is very interesting to consider how Akhenaten dictated so many changes to the Egyptian culture, when they had been doing things a specific way for many years prior.

The “Relief of Princess with an Earring” is on display at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology museum in the gallery, Amarna: Ancient Egypt’s Place in the Sun.  Although only a portion of the limestone relief is depicted, the overall concept of the image reveals the ideas of the Amarna period.  The relief is placed on the 

wall with a glass slab surrounding it.  On the glass slab, surrounding the relief, the rest of the image is depicted through a white outline.  Next to this relief, are other fragments from the Amarna period.  Many objects from Ancient Egypt do not remain fully intact, considering that it was many years ago and there was a continual progression of rulers rebuilding. There is no clear information on how the museum was able to acquire the object, but by being displayed next to other objects related to the Amarna period and Akhenaten it is an important object in the collection. In the “Relief of Princess with an Earring,” Akhenaten is depicted with his wife Nefertiti and his daughters.  Aten, the sun god, is represented as a disk with arms extended feeding, Akhenaten’s family the ankh.  An ankh is an ancient Egyptian hieroglyph that is meant to represent both life and eternal life. In the recreation of Akhenaten his masculine and feminine aspects are revealed.  He is represented with thick lips, feminine hips and thighs, a large stomach, and narrow shoulders. The label is place on a reader rail and states the different people that are represented in the relief and relates it to the bigger ideas of the Amarna period.  Akhenaten’s family is represented the way god’s were typically depicted, revealing the fact that they were aligning themselves with the gods. 

          To learn more about the relief, one could consider visiting the Amarna gallery at the museum.  Although there is not a lot of information on the website or online about this particular relief, one could consider researching the Amarna period or Akhenaten.  It would be interesting for someone who does not know much about the Amarna period to could take a history or art history class about Ancient Egypt.  By taking a class about Ancient Egypt in general, one would be able to have a better understanding of why the ideas of Amarna period were so different and drastic. 

Someone who might not be interested in this object may be someone who thinks that the ancient Egyptians reveal proof of aliens. Some people believe that the Amarna period supports this theory of ancient aliens due to the diversity of the images and the fact that many of the images reveal a communication between the sky and people.  They would probably believe that the “Relief of Princess with an Earring” supports their theory because the sky disk reveals a communication between the sky and the individuals depicted.  

           Another person who may not be interested in the relief, may be someone who believes that Akhenaten is depicted differently is because he believed to have Marfan’s syndrome.  They would argue that the reason that the Amarna period’s images differ is because of this syndrome.  In addition, in comparison to the other objects in the other Egyptian galleries at the Penn Museum, it would not be surprising to learn that the Amarna gallery may be overlooked.  Visitors to the museum may be more interested in the Giant Sphinx and the mummies and may not even notice the small Amarna gallery.

To further engage viewers with this object, the museum could hold gallery talks in the different Egyptian galleries.  During this gallery talk ,the museum could discuss the diversity of the images in the Amarna collection compared to the objects in the rest of Egyptian galleries.  In addition, the museum could invite an art historian who has a background in Ancient Egypt to compare and contrast images from the Amarna period to the other Egyptian periods.  Another way to engage people with the relief would be to create a timeline of Ancient Egypt through objects.  An object from each period would be chosen.  This would allow for visitors to see the changes of imagery over time. 

Amarna sculpture

Ancient Egyptian sculpture

Ordinary Objects

Museum Practium: Objective Blog, Philadelphia History Museum

Oktavia LaBarge, November 7, 2013

Title: Rocking Horse

Year:1916

Material: Wood, paint, glass (Replacement tail)

Creator: János Demiam

Collection: The Historical Society of Pennsylvania Collection, Balch Institute for Ethnic Studies Collection, 2006, Gift of Mrs. Ethel Demian, 1985

This is a rocking horse from the Philadelphia History Museum in “The Ordinary, the Extraordinary, and the Unknown: The Power of Objects,” gallery.  The museum works to display the history of Philadelphia through the experiences of people in Philadelphia and their objects in its collection.  This rocking horse was carved by a Hungarian immigrant, János Demian, a carver at the Philadelphia Toboggan Company, for his son in 1916.  The Philadelphia Toboggan Company was created in 1904, to builds cars for wooden roller coasters and carousels.

Although this object may seem trivial, it reveals part of Philadelphia’s past.  America is composed of a melting pot of immigrants from all over the world.  At one point, Philadelphia was a central immigrant port and in the early 20th century Philadelphia was the third largest port in the United States.  The rocking horse is a reminder that Philadelphia is made up of immigrants and that they played an important role in the development of the city.   

In the description of the exhibition, it states, “The Ordinary, the Extraordinary, and the Unknown, challenges viewers to look at the meaning of objects, the stories they tell, and their Philadelphia connection.”  This reveals the importance of the rocking horse, because although it may seem ordinary, a variety of interpretations can be made from it.  

In 1985, the rocking horse was given to The Historical Society of Pennsylvania Collection, Balch Institute for Ethnic Studies Collection by Ethel Demian.  The Historical Society of Pennsylvania works to preserve the history and heritage of Pennsylvania. I can only assume that Ethel Demian is a relative of János Demian, the creator of this rocking horse, since they have the same last name.  

The rocking horse is on the second floor of the Philadelphia History Museum in “The Ordinary, the Extraordinary, and the Unknown: The Power of Objects” gallery.  The object is in a glass case in the right corner of the exhibition. The gallery has multiple shelves of objects and placed below the rocking horse is a toy train and Philly the War Dog, who was a mascot of the American soldiers during World War I. The objects placed in the room reveal  the ideas and intent of the exhibition.  The museum has a diverse array of objects ranging from eye glasses to a cage which held the dead bodies of criminals.  It is interesting to consider how all of these objects relate to the history of Philadelphia.

On the reader rail that wraps around the room, are numbers that correspond with numbers placed next to the objects and that have information about the item.  In addition, the museum has iPads placed on the reader rail, where a visitor can find a specific object and learn more information about it.  The label and iPad reveal the maker, date, source, materials, dimensions, and additional relevant information.  Sadly, the information that is on the iPad about the rocking horse is the same that is stated in the label.  The label and iPad reveal that this is a story of a father’s love, who created the rocking horse as a gift for his son.

Despite my interest in the rocking horse, many visitors would probably not notice this object.  It is placed above the visitor’s eye level and is in the corner of the room.  In addition, there is no information about Janos Damien or this specific rocking horse online.  If a visitor would like to learn more about this object, they could consider researching more about rocking horses.  Rocking horses are a popular children’s toy, dating back to ancient Greece.  In addition, someone interested could consider visiting the Philadelphia Toboggan Company, which is still around today.

Someone who might not be interested in this object may be an adult who does not have children.  This person would probably overlook the rocking horse in the museum because they would not have an interest in children’s toys.  In addition, someone who had a negative experience with horses would probably dislike the rocking horse because it may bring back negative memories.

To further engage visitors with the rocking horse the museum could consider creating a scavenger hunt in the museum.  Since the organization of the museum is composed of a varieties of objects from different time periods, many objects may be overlooked due to the mass amount in a small area.  By creating a scavenger hunt, the museum could draw visitor’s attention to objects that may have been overlooked before.  In addition, the museum could consider creating a special exhibition which reveals the different toys made in Philadelphia over time.  It would be interesting to learn about different toy companies and see the evolution of toys over time. This would be beneficial to the museum to allow them to draw in families with children who like toys.

Not your average houseplant!

Museum Practicum: Objective Blog, American Swedish Historical Museum

Oktavia LaBarge, October 30, 2013

            

Title: Aralia

Year: Designed c. 1928, produced c. 2010

Material: Linen

Creator: Josef Frank

Collection: American Swedish Museum: Josef Frank: The Enduring Designs of Josef Frank: Courtesy of Svenskt Tenn, Stockholm, Sweden 

This is a piece of fabric, titled Aralia, designed by Josef Frank, a well known designer and architect.  It is in the special exhibition, Josef Frank: The Enduring Designs of Josef Frank, at the American Swedish Historical Museum.  Josef Frank is considered a pioneer in Swedish modern design and is well known for his natural patterns composed of bright and bold colors.  This is revealed in the work, Aralia, which is meant to represent a common houseplant. However,

Frank creates an interesting design with his use of bold colors.  Frank was inspired to create this design when he was commissioned to decorate a villa in the Hohe Warte in Vienna.

The label that is placed next to the Aralia fabric describes the influences on the design and how they align with his design aesthetic. It also describes the importance of Frank’s design discussing the different uses of the fabric.  The label states that in 1939, Josef Frank used the Aralia fabric for a bedroom and living room design for the Golden Gate Exposition in San Francisco.  The Golden Gate Exposition was a fair and celebrated the creation of the Golden Gate bridge.  The Aralia is very important to Swedish design, so important that in 1994, the design was made into a postage stamp commemorating 150 years of Swedish design, which you can still buy today!   

Josef Frank was born in Austria in 1885.  In 1933, due to the rise of Nazism in Vienna, Frank and his wife moved to Stockholm.  Throughout his life, Frank’s designs were very popular with the Swedish.  This fabric is on display at the American Swedish Historical Museum to reveal popular modern Swedish design aesthetics.  It is a special exhibition

called, Josef Frank: The Enduring Designs of Josef Frank and is open Spring 2014. Many of the fabrics that are on display in the special exhibition are reproductions of the past made by a department store in Sweden called, Svenskt Tenn.  

The exhibit itself has a very unique and interesting design.  There are multiple fabrics that were created by Josef Frank that are all hanging from rods.  They look like unrolled fabrics from a fabric store.  This makes the textiles seem more accessible by having them displayed this way.  When you first walk into the museum and turn left, you see a large animal-shaped rug hanging on the wall of the exhibit.  The rug reveals the design ideas of Frank by having a natural object composed of bright bold colors. When you turn right you see two unrolled fabrics hanging against a white wall.  Having this juxtaposition of the bold colors and the white wall really makes the design ideas almost jump off the fabric.  Next to the Aralia fabric is a very basic chair with Frank’s design twist.  The chair is painted a bold red which nicely compliments the bold colors in the Aralia fabric.  The chair still has this naturalistic feel by the simplicity of the design and the neutral colored seat.  

As you continue into the special exhibition, the walls are all lined with the brightly color fabric.  Throughout the space, are different furniture pieces which reveal how the fabrics which Frank designed are used in furniture design.  It was interesting to see how the fabrics looked on different chairs and couches and consider the bold of statements they would make in someones house.

If someone wanted to learn more about Swedish Modernism they could consider researching information about Swedish design aesthetics. Someone might also want to visit the American Swedish Museum and learn more about the Swedish culture.  In addition, someone could consider taking a modern art history class. At the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, they offer modern art history classes online.  This person could also consider reading the book, Josef Frank: LIfe and Work, by Christopher Long to learn more about the work of Frank.

Someone who might not be interested in Franks designs or the Aralia textile would be someone with a more classical design aesthetic.  This could be someone who does not like using bright and bold colors in interior design.  They may think that the modernist design is tacky and overwhelming.  I believe that many artists who worked before the modernist movement in the early 19th century would probably really dislike this design aesthetic.  They would probably consider the designs of Frank very childlike and unrealistic.  

To further engage viewers with the Aralia fabric and the other textiles by Josef Frank, the museum could consider creating a coloring book composed of the different naturalist designs.  This would allow visitors to color in the fabrics with their own color choices and compare their designs to the designs of Frank. It would be very interesting to see how visitors interpret the motifs of Josef Frank’s design.