Full Transcript for Resting Bust Face

00:02:02,320 41 00:02:02,320 --> 00:02:05,540 Even now, children are always trying to recreate my face. 42 00:02:07,870 --> 00:02:08,190 [child laughs and blows raspberry] 43 00:02:08,190 --> 00:02:11,389 And assuming something other than the reality. 44 00:02:11,860 --> 00:02:16,830 The reality is just that I am thinking, deeply, and I 45 00:02:16,830 --> 00:02:20,859 would appreciate it if people could figure that out before 46 00:02:21,129 --> 00:02:22,389 jumping to conclusions. 47 00:02:22,889 --> 00:02:25,839 No, I do not need more fiber in my diet. 48 00:02:25,839 --> 00:02:29,719 [bite from apple] I am a sculpture after all. 49 00:02:29,719 --> 00:02:30,819 [clay crumbling] 50 00:02:30,819 --> 00:02:34,009 And what does my definitely not-angry, definitely 51 00:02:34,009 --> 00:02:35,779 not-pooping face look like? 52 00:02:36,169 --> 00:02:39,320 The stone skin between the eyebrows is pushed together 53 00:02:39,519 --> 00:02:42,999 because my brow is furrowed, like when you are stuck on a 54 00:02:43,000 --> 00:02:45,989 very hard homework problem and your brain is not cooperating. 55 00:02:46,289 --> 00:02:46,520 [Child says “Hmm.”] 56 00:02:46,520 --> 00:02:47,529 [Mysterious music plays] 57 00:02:47,529 --> 00:02:48,439 My eyes squint. 58 00:02:51,309 --> 00:02:51,950 My nose scrunches. 59 00:02:53,479 --> 00:02:55,039 My jaw is set. 60 00:02:56,789 --> 00:02:58,810 My neck and cheek muscles are tense. 61 00:02:59,270 --> 00:03:02,300 My hairline is, uh, receding, yes. 62 00:03:02,960 --> 00:03:04,970 Oh, why did I say that part? 63 00:03:05,430 --> 00:03:06,640 This is a podcast! 64 00:03:06,679 --> 00:03:07,660 You would’ve never known. 65 00:03:07,670 --> 00:03:09,810 Well, unless you looked up my photograph. 66 00:03:09,840 --> 00:03:10,989 Well, never mind. 67 00:03:11,570 --> 00:03:15,290 There are also natural cracks running through the alabaster 68 00:03:15,299 --> 00:03:16,509 that I am carved from. [cracking stoneware] 69 00:03:16,509 --> 00:03:19,530 The stone itself has aged and 70 00:03:19,539 --> 00:03:23,259 settled over the centuries and turned a touch more yellow. 71 00:03:23,599 --> 00:03:27,109 The lines in the material enhance the lines on my face. 72 00:03:28,570 --> 00:03:29,820 Two and a half centuries. 73 00:03:30,200 --> 00:03:31,280 I think it suits me. [laughs] 74 00:03:31,280 --> 00:03:31,280 75 00:03:31,280 --> 00:03:32,919 [Classical music plays] 76 00:03:32,919 --> 00:03:36,839 I was made during a great time of intellectual curiosity 77 00:03:36,899 --> 00:03:39,239 called the Enlightenment Era. 78 00:03:40,029 --> 00:03:42,740 Should you need to picture it further, think powdered 79 00:03:42,750 --> 00:03:45,979 white wigs on men, corsets and billowing skirts on 80 00:03:45,980 --> 00:03:49,979 women, heeled shoes on everyone, and horse-drawn 81 00:03:49,980 --> 00:03:51,050 carriages for travel. 82 00:03:51,050 --> 00:03:52,519 [crowd chatter and horses pulling carriages] 83 00:03:52,519 --> 00:03:55,019 The Enlightenment was when people got very serious about 84 00:03:55,110 --> 00:03:59,820 understanding things: science, reason, asking questions 85 00:03:59,820 --> 00:04:01,529 and pursuing the answers. [crowd chatter] 86 00:04:01,529 --> 00:04:04,219 Coffee houses, newspapers, and 87 00:04:04,260 --> 00:04:07,479 literary salons, places where people could mingle, 88 00:04:07,540 --> 00:04:11,190 debate, and share new ideas flourished during this time. 89 00:04:11,919 --> 00:04:15,609 It was also a time of social and political revolution. 90 00:04:15,609 --> 00:04:16,890 [Star Spangled Banner plays] In what is now called the 91 00:04:16,890 --> 00:04:21,019 United States, Thomas Jefferson and his friends wrote the 92 00:04:21,110 --> 00:04:24,969 Declaration of Independence based on the bold new idea 93 00:04:25,199 --> 00:04:28,879 that people should, uh, have rights just for being people. 94 00:04:28,879 --> 00:04:30,509 [Classical music resumes] 95 00:04:30,509 --> 00:04:34,139 My creator was Franz Xaver Messerschmidt, a German 96 00:04:34,139 --> 00:04:37,789 sculptor working in Austria, a country right next to Germany. 97 00:04:38,369 --> 00:04:41,379 Messerschmidt was interested in the idea of looking at 98 00:04:41,379 --> 00:04:44,679 a person’s expression to understand something true 99 00:04:44,729 --> 00:04:46,009 about their inner life. [voice says “Hmm.”] 100 00:04:46,009 --> 00:04:48,449 Their feelings, their character. 101 00:04:49,099 --> 00:04:51,589 He would stand in front of a mirror and pull his face into 102 00:04:51,629 --> 00:04:54,379 the most extreme expressions he could manage: [voice 103 00:04:54,379 --> 00:05:01,219 grunting] grimacing, straining, even howling. [warewolf howl] 104 00:05:01,219 --> 00:05:02,999 And you, what can your face do? 105 00:05:03,449 --> 00:05:06,049 Can you scrunch your nose, cross your eyes, 106 00:05:06,050 --> 00:05:07,410 and puff out your cheeks? 107 00:05:07,729 --> 00:05:08,269 Go ahead. 108 00:05:08,599 --> 00:05:10,830 Try to make the most extreme face you can think 109 00:05:10,830 --> 00:05:12,520 of, and do not worry! 110 00:05:12,669 --> 00:05:15,649 While I might be permanently stuck this way, your 111 00:05:15,660 --> 00:05:17,239 grandparents are incorrect. 112 00:05:17,419 --> 00:05:21,570 If you are not made of stone, your face won’t 113 00:05:21,580 --> 00:05:22,800 get stuck like that. 114 00:05:23,190 --> 00:05:23,210 Yeah. 115 00:05:23,949 --> 00:05:25,399 Faces are so interesting. 116 00:05:25,720 --> 00:05:28,949 That is probably why Messerschmidt, my sculptor, 117 00:05:29,190 --> 00:05:33,549 made at least 49 of us, dozens and dozens of character 118 00:05:33,550 --> 00:05:36,720 heads, as they called us, all different expressions, 119 00:05:36,940 --> 00:05:39,249 all feeling something. 120 00:05:42,289 --> 00:05:46,600 I am, objectively speaking, very well made, out 121 00:05:46,600 --> 00:05:47,930 of alabaster, no less. 122 00:05:48,349 -->

00:05:51,930 Alabaster is a smooth, almost creamy white stone. 123 00:05:52,220 --> 00:05:55,640 It is soft enough that a skilled sculptor can work 124 00:05:55,640 --> 00:05:58,630 it with wooden hand tools like chisels and files. 125 00:05:59,900 --> 00:06:03,620 To make a head like mine, first you start with a ball of 126 00:06:03,620 --> 00:06:06,820 alabaster, then you refine it. 127 00:06:07,530 --> 00:06:10,589 A flat chisel for the broad planes of the forehead 128 00:06:10,589 --> 00:06:13,309 and cheeks, smaller tools for the detail. 129 00:06:14,350 --> 00:06:17,849 Each pass of the tool removes a little more material. 130 00:06:18,090 --> 00:06:20,059 You cannot put it back. 131 00:06:20,400 --> 00:06:25,170 Every cut is a decision, as soft alabaster hardens over time. 132 00:06:25,599 --> 00:06:26,929 Then comes the finishing. 133 00:06:27,189 --> 00:06:31,059 Alabaster can be polished almost to a glow [harp chord] with 134 00:06:31,059 --> 00:06:38,009 increasingly fine abrasives: sand, then pumice, then cloth. 135 00:06:38,559 --> 00:06:43,340 The result is that soft, warm quality you can see in me. 136 00:06:43,340 --> 00:06:44,900 [Classical violin music plays] 137 00:06:44,900 --> 00:06:47,410 Oh, Messerschmidt would’ve worked on a face like mine 138 00:06:47,439 --> 00:06:50,209 for weeks, months perhaps, given how much is happening, 139 00:06:50,579 --> 00:06:52,149 you know, on my face. 140 00:06:52,369 --> 00:06:56,179 Every wrinkle, every tensed muscle, every squint and crease 141 00:06:56,180 --> 00:07:00,880 around the eye had to be carved deliberately by hand in stone 142 00:07:01,139 --> 00:07:02,639 that does not forgive mistakes. 143 00:07:03,360 --> 00:07:05,099 Oh, he was extraordinarily skilled. 144 00:07:06,379 --> 00:07:10,770 While he also worked with marble and bronze, I personally think 145 00:07:11,010 --> 00:07:13,120 the alabasters were his best. 146 00:07:13,120 --> 00:07:16,259 [Music ends] 147 00:07:16,259 --> 00:07:18,229 Many have admired the craftsmanship that went 148 00:07:18,229 --> 00:07:19,389 into making my face. 149 00:07:19,619 --> 00:07:22,949 For a number of years, I was displayed in Vienna’s amusement 150 00:07:22,949 --> 00:07:25,839 park, the Prater, [crowd chatter and carnival music] as 151 00:07:25,879 --> 00:07:27,649 kind of a sideshow attraction. 152 00:07:28,360 --> 00:07:31,360 The Prater was a place to see and be seen. 153 00:07:32,379 --> 00:07:35,320 Viennese society strolled and promenaded. 154 00:07:35,820 --> 00:07:37,830 They rode carousels and went bowling. 155 00:07:39,699 --> 00:07:43,130 They experienced the new, the curious, and the strange. 156 00:07:44,049 --> 00:07:46,939 And at this time, I was considered very strange. 157 00:07:47,139 --> 00:07:47,279 Huh. 158 00:07:47,379 --> 00:07:48,179 [Spooky, mysterious music plays] 159 00:07:48,180 --> 00:07:51,299 I was in a room with other character heads, including the 160 00:07:51,309 --> 00:07:55,659 Yawner, Childish Weeping, the Incapable Bassoonist, and, uh, 161 00:07:57,250 --> 00:07:59,209 um, Afflicted With Constipation. 162 00:07:59,449 --> 00:08:03,579 [people laugh] Now, I’ll never understand how people could 163 00:08:03,579 --> 00:08:05,739 mistake my expression for his. 164 00:08:06,440 --> 00:08:10,349 Ah, at any rate, visitors could even buy painted replicas 165 00:08:10,360 --> 00:08:13,619 of the heads in plaster or wax as a type of souvenir. 166 00:08:13,619 --> 00:08:15,749 [child says “Cool!”] Adults and children passed 167 00:08:15,750 --> 00:08:18,339 through the booth where I sat, and without fail, 168 00:08:18,520 --> 00:08:21,559 someone always acknowledged my presence by making an 169 00:08:21,559 --> 00:08:23,289 exaggerated face of their own. 170 00:08:23,299 --> 00:08:25,269 [children yelling in hallway] There were the children who 171 00:08:25,270 --> 00:08:30,870 would stop, look at me, study me, and then scrunch the 172 00:08:30,870 --> 00:08:34,669 whole face in one go: brow down, nose up, eyes squinting. 173 00:08:34,970 --> 00:08:36,869 My face on their face! [children laughing] 174 00:08:37,039 --> 00:08:37,719 Oh. 175 00:08:38,559 --> 00:08:41,719 Younger children would wobble over, look at me, and do 176 00:08:41,720 --> 00:08:44,769 their own version: cheeks puffed out, mouth twisted. 177 00:08:45,250 --> 00:08:46,719 Rather committed to it, actually. 178 00:08:46,729 --> 00:08:51,129 [baby laughs] Then the silliest children, they would stick out 179 00:08:51,129 --> 00:08:54,189 their tongues and cross their eyes in the exact same way. 180 00:08:55,169 --> 00:08:58,199 [child blows raspberry] Now, I cannot raise an eyebrow. 181 00:08:58,430 --> 00:09:01,720 I cannot smile; I am alabaster. 182 00:09:02,440 --> 00:09:05,360 But if I could have laughed, I would have 183 00:09:05,360 --> 00:09:06,510 laughed every single day. 184 00:09:06,809 --> 00:09:10,250 Those children sticking their tongue out, I nearly cracked. 185 00:09:11,150 --> 00:09:14,270 [laughs] Uh, figuratively speaking. [rocks crumble] 186 00:09:14,270 --> 00:09:14,270 187 00:09:14,270 --> 00:09:15,100 Funny thing, isn’t it? 188 00:09:15,240 --> 00:09:19,519 You can look at a face and be completely, thoroughly wrong 189 00:09:19,549 --> 00:09:21,189 about what’s going on inside it. 190 00:09:21,719 --> 00:09:24,469 Have you ever felt fine or even happy, but your 191 00:09:24,469 --> 00:09:25,390 face didn’t show it? 192 00:09:26,020 --> 00:09:29,350 Have you ever been so wrapped up in something that someone 193 00:09:29,360 --> 00:09:32,540 asked if you were all right and you were, uh, surprised? 194 00:09:33,049 --> 00:09:35,109 That is what I am talking about. 195 00:09:35,919 --> 00:09:40,349 Alas, a sculpture is frozen in one moment, one expression. 196 00:09:41,049 --> 00:09:42,299 That is all I get. 197 00:09:42,689 --> 00:09:46,129 But you, you are not a sculpture, so why 198 00:09:46,129 --> 00:09:48,119 don’t you loosen up? [mallet hits a bell] 199

00:09:48,119 --> 00:09:48,119 200 00:09:48,119 --> 00:09:50,049 But first, let’s get tense. 201 00:09:50,149 --> 00:09:51,129 Well, like me. 202 00:09:51,889 --> 00:09:55,559 Scrunch those shoulders up to your ears, close those eyes 203 00:09:55,709 --> 00:10:00,560 good and tight, furrow those brows, and make a face as if 204 00:10:00,569 --> 00:10:04,340 you need a bathroom right away and more fiber in your diet. 205 00:10:04,900 --> 00:10:05,809 Notice your face. 206 00:10:05,869 --> 00:10:06,889 Yeah, right now. 207 00:10:07,750 --> 00:10:09,069 Is your brow pushed down? 208 00:10:09,419 --> 00:10:12,229 Are your teeth pressed together, your jaw clenched? 209 00:10:12,720 --> 00:10:13,960 Yes, I can tell. 210 00:10:14,699 --> 00:10:16,239 Now, let it go. 211 00:10:17,999 --> 00:10:18,299 [Calm piano music begins] 212 00:10:18,299 --> 00:10:19,189 Smooth it out. 213 00:10:20,250 --> 00:10:24,459 How completely and totally can you relax? 214 00:10:25,509 --> 00:10:28,459 All right, let’s see if you can relax even further. 215 00:10:28,959 --> 00:10:29,969 Try using your breath. 216 00:10:30,869 --> 00:10:33,149 Breathe in through your nose slowly. 217 00:10:33,919 --> 00:10:34,470 Count with me. 218 00:10:35,439 --> 00:10:39,249 One, two, three, four. 219 00:10:40,339 --> 00:10:40,879 Hold your breath. 220 00:10:42,000 --> 00:10:46,379 One, two, three, four. 221 00:10:47,089 --> 00:10:50,809 And breathe out, through your mouth, all the way out. 222 00:10:51,500 --> 00:10:58,089 One, two, three, four, five, six. 223 00:10:59,119 --> 00:11:00,439 Let your shoulders drop. 224 00:11:01,180 --> 00:11:02,489 Let your hands open. 225 00:11:02,989 --> 00:11:05,529 Let your face just rest. 226 00:11:06,589 --> 00:11:08,370 Now try one yourself. 227 00:11:08,370 --> 00:11:24,006 [Music plays] 228 00:11:24,007 --> 00:11:24,007 229 00:11:24,008 --> 00:11:24,008 230 00:11:24,009 --> 00:11:24,009 231 00:11:24,009 --> 00:11:25,320 There, that wasn’t so difficult, was it? 232 00:11:26,179 --> 00:11:28,169 You can do that whenever you need to, you know. 233 00:11:28,789 --> 00:11:32,289 Whenever you notice your face or even your whole body 234 00:11:32,330 --> 00:11:35,079 tensing up more than you’d like it to, feeling anxious, 235 00:11:35,369 --> 00:11:37,030 frustration bubbling up. 236 00:11:37,649 --> 00:11:39,869 Has someone annoyed you by bringing up your 237 00:11:39,869 --> 00:11:42,529 ever-receding hairline again? 238 00:11:43,440 --> 00:11:46,579 Feel that emotion, then take a breath. 239 00:11:47,599 --> 00:11:52,189 Tighten up, and then relax. 240 00:11:54,150 --> 00:11:54,800 It works, right? 241 00:11:56,800 --> 00:12:00,833 [Theme music begins] 242 00:12:00,833 --> 00:12:02,170 Host: I hope you enjoyed learning about 243 00:12:02,250 --> 00:12:04,410 alabaster and relaxation. [voice sighs] 244 00:12:05,320 --> 00:12:09,710 Join us next time when an observant griffin 245 00:12:09,750 --> 00:12:12,350 shares her perspective. [wings flying] 246 00:12:12,350 --> 00:12:12,350 247 00:12:12,350 --> 00:12:15,609 To see photographs of The Vexed Man, visit our website 248 00:12:15,670 --> 00:12:18,439 at getty dot edu slash IOCT. 249 00:12:20,139 --> 00:12:23,050 We’ve also got a listening guide with discussion questions 250 00:12:23,119 --> 00:12:25,099 and related activities there. 251 00:12:25,869 --> 00:12:28,479 This episode was written by Tocarra Elise and 252 00:12:28,480 --> 00:12:30,070 produced by Zoe Goldman. 253 00:12:30,509 --> 00:12:32,749 Andy Lipshultz voiced the sculpture. 254 00:12:33,270 --> 00:12:37,380 Theme music, mixing, and sound design by Alexandra Kalinowski. 255 00:12:37,910 --> 00:12:40,329 Christopher Sprinkle is executive producer. 256 00:12:40,750 --> 00:12:43,899 Special thanks to curators Anne-Lise Desmas and 257 00:12:43,910 --> 00:12:46,640 Miriam Schefzyk, as well as Rebekkah Hart. 258 00:12:47,199 --> 00:12:49,240 These stories are historical fiction. 259 00:12:49,459 --> 00:12:52,300 They’re based on historical facts and deep research, 260 00:12:52,329 --> 00:12:55,129 but we’ve filled in the gaps to make a good story. 261 00:12:55,759 --> 00:12:58,629 If you have questions about what you’ve heard, write to us 262 00:12:58,809 --> 00:13:01,819 at podteam at getty dot edu. 263 00:13:02,439 --> 00:13:03,539 Catch you next time!