Winged Victory

Black and White Challenge – Day Three – Statue

/ Bulldog Travels / 16 Comments

I accept the challenge to post five black and white photos for five consecutive days this week. They ask that we include our black and white and its original match and I threw in some extras for fun.

I was challenged by Indah Susanti over at http://indahs.com/ .  Indah has a gorgeous travel blog specializing in underwater photography.  I encourage you to check it out.

As part of the challenge I am encouraged to challenge another blogger I am connected to each day.  Today I challenge

Crystal Trulove @ Conscious Engagement  @ https://crystaltrulove.wordpress.com/  Crystal and I have a lot in common.  Her energy and enjoyment of travel are reflected in her blog posts.  Please check her blog out.

Below is a photo of one of my favorite statues, the Winged Victory of Samothrace housed at the Louvre.  I think the black and white photo adds a certain amount of extra mystery to her.  She is already magnificence enough.  But the black and white adds a romance to the image.  The other photos included in this post are from throughout France and Spain.

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Winged Victory of Samothrace- Nike – The Louvre, Paris

/ Bulldog Travels / 1 Comment

Have you ever seen anything that totally and immediately captivated you? Winged Victory is, in my opinion, quite possibly the most moving and beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. She is glorious and commands attention. Winged Victory represents the Greek God of Victory, Nike and was created to celebrate a great sea battle victory.  She was created in 200-190 B.C.  The sculptor is thought to be Pythokritos of Rhodes.

The Louvre places her at the base of a large staircase mounted on a platform all her own. She is the only art I recall seeing in a room all by herself.  This masterpiece is not flanked by any other single piece of art which certainly adds to her grandeur.  She stands eight feet tall even without a head. Some say she is even more mysterious and lovely without her face. Probably the most striking feature to me is the fact the artist managed to capture movement in stone. She is standing in the wind and her dress is blowing and it is utterly believable. And then there are her wings. They are huge and seem to defy gravity despite their obvious weight. (To say nothing about the fact they have survived undamaged all this time.) I could sit and stare at her for hours. I hope you enjoy staring at her for moments!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winged_Victory_of_Samothrace

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Winged Victory was moved to safety during WWII.  It was obviously quite the undertaking.

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