The Choragic Monument of Lysikrates, 334 BCE was erected by the choregos Lysikrates

— a wealthy Athenian who sponsored non-government funded dramatic productions — to commemorate the first prize of a production he had sponsored in the theatre of Dionysos. Inspired by the publication of classical Athenian architectural engravings of two English architects, James Stuart and Nicholas Revett, many emulations and replicas have been produced long after the erection of the initial monument in Greece. Each version is located in a different geographical space, and through exhaustive investigation, this paper aims to trace the viewers’ approach and the shifting narrative surrounding each version, building from the original to form a larger understanding and critique of the form.

Plaster casts typically based on well known artworks were displayed in European and American museums and galleries prior to the twentieth century. Though popular, these plaster casts were never seen to be equivalent in value to the original, authentic pieces. In recent years there has been a resurgence of interest in plaster casts and many museums collections have been pulling casts out of storage to put on display. Current usage of casts in European and American museums is overwhelmingly for educational use, as they allow the public to view art from all around the world. However, it is clear from the way that they are presented that casts are not seen as art. The Akropolis Museum in Athens, Greece may be taken as an exception to this way of thinking as the museum and its curators have placed plaster casts of the Parthenon sculptures alongside the authentic marble sculptures. The integration of casts alongside original sculptures in their Parthenon exhibit works as an educational and political tool. This choice of positioning allows them to be misinterpreted by visitors who are ignorant of the Parthenon's history; under the gaze of these visitors, the status of these casts has been elevated to that of art. While casts are still viewed as a form of replication, the Akropolis stands as an exception that begs the question of how casts may be used in the future and what this means for their status as art.

This paper seeks to contextualize the representations of the relationship of Athena and Herakles in art within the established cultural and artistic practices and the artistic conventions employed to convey meaning. Artistic representations of Athena and Herakles repeatedly make use of sexually charged types in extant art, with Athena frequently reversing gender norms and seemingly establishing herself as a sexually dominant partner of Herakles. Such artistic representations appear at odds with extant literary sources, and may represent unknown narratives, or interpretations of extant myths. Possible readings of these sexualized representations of Athena and Herakles’ relationship are potentially numerous, but they show that their relationship was considered to exceed that of the patron-hero relationship – if only in popular representation.

I examine literary and visual portrayals of Europa from the eighth to the second centuries BC. The evidence is distributed across a variety of media, genres, geographical locations, and contexts. My belief is that by exploring how ancient audiences interacted with various literary and visual representations of Europa, we will come to understand how Europa is both a source for the name of the continent Europe, as well as much that constitutes modern European identity. This includes an acute awareness of the need to integrate men, women, and people of diverse cultural backgrounds into a common cultural milieu. My approach integrates modern scholarship on the plurality of Greek religions, network theory, and audience engagement theories. I focus on individual representations of Europa in order to understand inner workings of the Europa Network, while also examining the evidence diachronically in order to understand system-wide features that persist over time. My findings reveal that Europa was a cross-cultural icon, whose myth was appropriated in times of marriage, death, war, and peace. Europa herself is a symbol of unity across divides, including those between people and gods, childhood and adulthood, even life and death. By the end, it will become clear that the ancient Greeks were more modern than we sometimes realize or give them credit for being. They also lived in a complex, interconnected world, and, through art and literature, devised sophisticated techniques for negotiating life’s transitions. They struggled with some of the same issues facing us today, and like us, they had no clear answers when it came to explaining the antagonism between sexes and cultures, but they did have tools to help, like the myth of Europa. In that sense, I hope to inspire us to activate art and literature similarly as we strive towards unity in an increasingly complex world. With immigration such a hot topic worldwide for public discourse, and the #metoo movement having brought women’s rights to the forefront as never before, we must learn to appreciate how we form a collective humanity with people living on every part of the planet today, as well as with those who lived thousands of years ago.

ABSTRACT OF THE THESIS

Exhibiting Asian Objects in the Norton Simon Museum:

The Orientalization of the Asian Art Galleries

By

Jenny Hong Mai Nguyen

Master of Arts in Art History

University of California, Irvine, 2017

Professor Margaret M. Miles, Chair

The purpose of my thesis is to analyze how the label, "Asian Art Collection," misrepresents and misinterprets the cultural objects displayed in the Norton Simon Museum. After Norton Simon's death in 1993, the museum underwent a five million dollar renovation, which included adding gallery space for Simon's Asian art collection. Designed by Frank Gehry with the assistance of Dr. Pratapaditya Pal, the overall design and aesthetic of the galleries suggests the idea of a sacred temple space, which generalizes Asia to be a timeless and oriental place. While the collection itself contains mostly religious objects, it fails to represent all Asian cultures and countries as indicated by the collection title. Using James Clifford's art-culture system, I question whether these cultural objects are considered art and analyze the value the museum assigned to these objects and how this value is reflected in how they are displayed. The Norton Simon Museum fails to educate the community it serves by not presenting a diverse and inclusive collection of objects from Asia.