Norton Simon Museum Sculpture Garden

A beautiful sculpture lays across a small section on the northwest end of the pond in the garden of Norton Simon Museum. Plenty of sculptures are positioned throughout the garden but this pensive dark beauty stands out amongst the lush green foliage and calm water. At dusk, the sculpture comes to life as the contrast of colors come alive.

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Every first Friday evening of the month, Norton Simon Museum of Art opens it's doors after 6PM to all for a free night of beautiful artwork. Many come to admire the sculptures and paintings after a long week. An occasional admirer can be found lost in a gaze over a masterpiece. Is he curious about what the woman is thinking? Is he studying the brilliant brush strokes? A moment locked in time without any awareness.

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She sits atop a pedestal, between a tree and the pond. Her right arm supports her, while her left appears to either brush her hair, or block the sun from her eyes. She is nude, inside a Garden of Eden setting, at the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena, California. She was created in 1937 and named "Mountain" by her creator, French sculpture Aristide Maillol (1861 - 1944), a pioneer of modernistic sculptures. Her form is simple, relaxed, casual, and elegant. Made of lead, her smooth and polished skin is colored in a neutral blue-grey tone, glinting in the sunlight. This is one in a series of statues and sculptures by Maillol, intended to challenge the puritanical suppression of women occurring during his lifetime. He displayed young women in an elegant, quiet, reposed and static position, in the way of ancient Greek and Roman classicism.

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Larger than life-size, she leans her weight on her right hip, looking as if she she's practicing yoga. Her skin of lead changes color, from light bluish to grayish, as the sun moves across the garden. There is a quiet dignity about her, seemingly unconcerned that she is nude. She is the statue named "Air", created in 1938 by French sculptor Aristide Maillol (1861 - 1944), whose passion was celebrating the beauty of the female form in the nude. While his more famous contemporary Auguste Rodin (1840 - 1917) expressed the torments and anguish of human expression, Maillol sought to rekindle Greek Classicism by emphasizing serenity, peace, dignity, poise, and balance in his sculptures. On display at the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena, California, this graceful artwork compliments the outdoor garden it rests in.

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Although he is not a household name, especially in America, the French artist Aristide Maillol (1861 - 1944) was a pioneer in creating avant-garde sculptures, whose work is displayed in nearly every major museum. Here, in his 1935 life-size creation "Three Nymphs" (at the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena, California), he aspires to mix ancient Greek Classicism with modernistic poise, strength, and sensuality. This was a radical idea during his lifetime, since society regarded women as second class. Notice how their hands are bound together in a supportive role, in a simple gesture, and with their heads held high. The middle statue was modeled by the artist's muse, a fifteen -year old girl (Dina Vierny) who became his lifelong inspiration, and who died in January 2009 at age 89. This bronze sculpture is displayed inside the museum's lobby.

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Even the ancient gods of classical mythology partied too hard, as commemorated in the above sculpture. This twenty inch tall terracotta sculpture, titled "Bacchante Supported by Bacchus and a Faun", is on display at the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena, California. Created in 1795 by French sculptor Claude Michel (called Clodion, who lived from 1738 to 1814), an intoxicated Bacchante, a female devotee to the god of wine, is held aloft by Bacchus and a hoofed faun. A jug of spilled wine sits at the revelers' feet and hooves, while a playful cherub carries grapes. The sculpture is meant to convey youthful exuberance with sensuality, in a lighter or comical theme. Funny how some things never change.

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Life size and naked, with her gown draped by her side, she holds a golden apple in her right hand. In ancient mythology she was known as Venus by the Romans, and as Aphrodite by the Greeks. Naming his statue as "Venus Victorious" in 1914, French sculptor Auguste Renoir (1841 - 1919) created her in bronze, depicting her in triumph. She had promised Paris, of Greek legend, that he could marry the most beautiful woman in the world, being Helen of Troy. Because of advancing arthritis, Renoir was assisted in sculpting this statue by his assistant, Richard Guino. It was purchased by the Norton Simon Museum of Pasadena, California in 1950, and is now permanently displayed in a wooded setting in the museum's garden.

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Poised on top of a block of granite, it seems to be stalking your every move. Cast in bronze and sculpted in life-size, the "Sitting Cheetah" sculpture is a recent acquisition by the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena, California. Created by California artist Gwynn Murrill (born 1942), this metal artwork has a smooth surface which complements the graceful form of such animals. The artist stays with just a simple, yet classical form, and its poised alertness commands a strong presence in the Museum's garden.

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If you could take just one photo: Norton Simon Museum of Art

Not far from the large installments and more popular art galleries of Los Angeles' museum row is a small gathering of the finest works I have ever seen. A millionaire philanthropist of the 1940s and 50s, Norton Simon was known for his love affair with art. When he passed in 1993, his vast collection of Renaissance artworks were donated to the Pasadena Art Museum. No less than the paintings and sculptures of Van Gough, Cezanne, Monet, Picasso, Renoir, and Degas grace the halls of the museum, and that is just to name a few. Not bad for a private collection. The opening hallway in particular caught my eye. I had always been fascinated with Vincent Van Gough. His "Portrait of a Peasant" is breathtaking. He captures every detail with his bright colors and fluid brush strokes. To make the starry night come to life is a wonder, but make an old man seem lively is genius. You can almost touch his face as the portrait seems 3D. You will watch in awe at the art displayed in this small museum. And a peaceful walk through the sculpture garden is icing on the cake. Well worth the $8 admission fee.

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Throughout the eons, young lovers have been depicted in art. In the 13th century, an unknown sculptor in India carved this couple—"caught in the act" while hiding behind a wall—from brown gneiss, a metamorphic and igneous rock material. On display in the South Asian Gallery at the Norton Simon Museum, the statue is titled Loving Couple (Maithuna) and symbolizes fertility and desire, known as kama, a common motif in Indian temple art. This stone carving is thought to have been for the great Sun Temple at Konarak, in the state of Orissa, along the Bay of Bengal coastline.

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They stand together wearing tattered rags, nooses, and barefoot. They are emaciated and in despair, knowing that they face execution. These are the six most prominent citizens of Calais in France, who in 1347 offered their lives to spare the city from English invaders, after a year of siege and starvation. Five centuries later, the French sculptor Auguste Rodin (1840 - 1917) honored their sacrifice with a bronze statute, entitled The Burghers of Calais. Rodin rejected contemporary conventions, which portrayed the group as heroic figures. Instead, he captures their anguish of being defeated, struggling with fear and self-sacrifice, as they leave the city gates to surrender to the invaders. In the end, they were all spared by the intervention of the Queen of England, who was moved by their bravery. This statue, one of twelve created by Rodin, is displayed at the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena, California.

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