Compare and contrast the figure sculptures Venus of Willendorf and the Cycladic female figure, considering their function and sculptural form. How do these artworks reflect the cultures in which they were made?
What will be an ideal response?
Venus of Willendorf is a prehistoric statuette found near a town of the same name in present-day Austria. Small in scale, less than five inches tall, it appears to be a fertility object meant to be carried around as an amulet or a good-luck charm. Only the features associated with childbearing are stressed such as the large belly, sagging breasts, and defined pubic area. Lack of facial features and feet suggest all this statuette could do was bear and nurture children. Associated with a small group of islands in the Aegean Sea is the Cycladic culture, and almost all Cycladic art consists of nude female figures like the female figure in the text. Unlike the full-bodied Venus sculptures, this one is larger in size, almost two feet in height; more abstract; and composed of geometric lines and shapes. Presumably these also were meant to be fertility images, although they are dramatically different from the fleshier "Venuses" in size and form.
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