Statue of a Crouching Venus, A.D. 100–150, Roman. Grey marble. Getty Museum
Art Break: The Aesthetics of Body Fat in Greek and Roman Sculpture
ONLINE ONLY
This is a past event
Ancient Greek and Roman writers frequently criticized bodies that deviated from a standard size and shape. But in works of art, artists depicted body fat in ways that can surprise us. Art historian Roko Rumora and University of Nottingham professor Mark Bradley examine how a marble statue of Venus and a bronze statuette of Hercules expand our understanding of the ideal body in antiquity.
Roko Rumora is the graduate curatorial intern for antiquities at the Getty Villa Museum and a doctoral candidate in the department of art history at the University of Chicago. His research explores the development of curatorial practices in the Roman Empire, with a particular focus on spaces built for public display of sculpture in the cities of Roman Asia Minor.
Mark Bradley is associate pro-vice-chancellor and professor of Classics at the University of Nottingham, United Kingdom. His primary research interests are in the visual and intellectual culture of imperial Rome, specifically on the cultural differences in perception, aesthetics and sensibilities.