Abstract
This article examines Alfred Stevens’ Dorchester House Dining Room Chimneypiece (c.1858-1875) in the context of its reception from the 1870s to the 1920s and in relation to two key notions: the Michelangelesque and intermediality. This chimneypiece, which was lauded as a masterpiece in the years following its creation, was consistently described as ‘Michelangelesque’ in the period concerned. Through a close analysis of Stevens’ works and their reception in this period, and supported by evidence from more recent scholarship on gesture and mediality, I demonstrate how understandings of this term cohere with modern definitions of artistic intermediality. In so doing, I reveal how Stevens’ adoption of Michelangelo-inspired traits on the chimneypiece, such as its distinct integration of figural sculptural into an architectural-sculptural framework, as well as its caryatids’ dynamic poses, signals the intermedial nature of his artistic practice. Ultimately, I show that the chimneypiece and its caryatids can be understood as expressions of the inter-relations that can occur between figural form and the medium as both a mode and material of art.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Journal | Sculpture Journal |
| Volume | 31 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages (from-to) | 447-477 |
| Number of pages | 31 |
| ISSN | 1366-2724 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Dec 2022 |