In this artwork, how is the abstract discussed?
Tanagra is a polychromic marble sculpture created by French artist Jean-Léon Gérôme (1824–1904) as a personification of the "spirit of Tanagra," his own mythic invention tied to the Tanagra figurines from the village of that name in ancient Greece. The sculpture was first shown at the Paris Salon of 1890. Gérôme subsequently created smaller, gilded bronze versions of Tanagra; several versions of the "Hoop Dancer" figurine held by Tanagra; two paintings of an imaginary ancient Tanagra workshop; and two self-portraits of himself sculpting Tanagra from a living model in his Paris atelier. These sculptures and paintings comprise a complex, self-referential artistic program in which one of the most celebrated artists of his generation explored reception of Classical antiquity, creative inspiration, doppelgängers, and female beauty.
Tanagra is displayed at the Musée d'Orsay. Much of the polychromy has faded, and the hoop dancer is damaged (part of the hoop and right arm are missing.)
Tanagra figurines Musée d'Orsay doppelgängers Tanagra figurine Paris Salon Classical antiquity Tanagra Salon Jean-Léon Gérôme Paris