Original Bronze Sculpture of Arachne

Details

Description

Bronze. Size (in): 7H x 9W x 15" L with custom-handcrafted black wood base. Lost-wax method cast bronze, signed by … Read more Bronze. Size (in): 7H x 9W x 15" L with custom-handcrafted black wood base. Lost-wax method cast bronze, signed by Canadian-American sculptor Candice Raquel Lee.

The Story: In Greek mythology, Arachne was a mortal weaver of such incomparable skill that she dared to challenge the goddess Athena to a contest. While Athena wove a tapestry depicting the glory of the gods, Arachne produced a masterpiece of breathtaking realism that exposed their human failings. Enraged by the girl's hubris—and perhaps her flawless technique—Athena transformed Arachne into a spider, condemning her to spin intricate webs for eternity.

The Sculpture: Traditionally, artistic renditions of the Arachne myth simply depict a young woman in Greek attire sitting at a loom; more recent works show a spider with a human face. I am not aware of any figurative sculpted representations of the story. The difficulty of making this sculpture lay in capturing the moment of Arachne's transformation into a spider and combining correct human anatomy with arachnid features. The greatest challenge--and where the artist has succeeded--is maintaining an artistic balance between the agonized beauty of a fragile girl and the hideous nature of her transformation, between human and spider anatomy.

Arachne embodies the inescapable drive of artistic passion as well. Even the ultimate escape of death is denied her: Arachne must continue weaving, creating forever. See less