Enlivening and - dividing: An Aporia of Illumination

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Abstract

In 1798, Karl August Böttiger paid a nocturnal visit to the Gallery of Antiques in Dresden, illuminating the statues with a torch. At first glance, this seems to be yet another example of a popular practice for visiting galleries c.1800. Illuminating the sculptures by torchlight was a popular means of enlivening the objects, set in motion by the light flickering on their surfaces. The collections were thus meant to become a place where cold, white stone comes to life, and where the beholder becomes part of a revived antiquity...
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1-23
JournalContemporaneity
Volume4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 3 Aug 2015

Bibliographical note

Hönes, H. C. (2015). "Enlivening and - Dividing": An Aporia of Illumination. Contemporaneity: Historical Presence in Visual Culture, 4, 1–23. https://doi.org/10.5195/contemp.2015.73

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