Research Paper on Sculpture and Architecture

Lincoln Memorial

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During the scavenger hunt, the first monument to visit was the Lincoln Memorial. The Lincoln Memorial is among the most iconic monuments in the United States (U.S.). It was constructed to commemorate President Abraham Lincoln. He was the 16th president of the nation. The monument is situated in the Washington D.C., at the western end of the renowned National Mall. The architect who was responsible for designing the monument was Henry Bacon, and he structured the iconic monument in 1920 (Hess, 2011). Today, the monument has become a major landmark in the nation, and a major attraction site for persons from all over the world.

Figure 1: The picture shows the front side of the Lincoln Memorial monument.

Jefferson Memorial

Also, during the scavenger hunt, I visited the Jefferson Memorial. The Memorial is also another major monument in the U.S. The monument was constructed as a dedication to the President Thomas Jefferson, who is considered to be among the most important founding father of the nation. The monument is also situated in Washington D.C., and it started on 1938 (Interstate Good Roads Convention, 2017). Franklin Roosevelt laid the cornerstone for the monument in November 1939. Other persons who also took part in the monuments construction include Daniel Higgins as well as Otto Eggers.

Figure 2: The picture shows the front side of the Jefferson Memorial monument.

The two monuments have a primary major similarity between them. This is that both of them were constructed as memorials for the former heads of state in the U.S. Also, both monuments are situated in the Washington D.C. Nevertheless, the popularity of the Lincoln Memorial surpasses that of the Jefferson Memorial among the public members. This phenomenon can be evidenced by the reason that the monument has been widely featured in books, films, televisions shows and music among others.

For example, by 2003, there were over 60 films that featured the Lincoln Memorial. Also, from 1959, the picture of the Lincoln Memorial monument was featured at the back of the U.S. one-cent coin (Interstate Good Roads Convention, 2017). The same coin features the bust of President Lincoln on its front side. These examples illustrate that the monument of Lincoln Memorial sufficiently achieved its purpose in commemorating President Lincoln long after he created history in the United States. Although the Jefferson Memorial also has a major role in the United States, its significance cannot outweigh that of the Lincoln Memorial.

Item 2: Two Statues

Boy Scout Memorial

During the scavenger hunt for some of the renowned sculptures in the U.S., I visited the Boy Scout Memorial sculptures. This is a renowned sculpture situated in the Ellipse region, Washington D.C. The sculpture was made in 1964 by Donald De Lue using Bronze and Granite. The sculpture was designed as an accolade to the organization of the Boys Scouts of America. The sculpture was also designed as a grateful tribute to both men and women in the nation whose efforts, generosity, leadership as well as devotion have brought Scouting to the nation. Also, the sculpture commemorates the scouting fraternity whose members have retained their duty to both God and the nation, both in periods of peace and peril.

Figure 3: The picture shows the Boy Scouts Memorial sculptures situated in Washington D.C.

The Three Soldiers Sculpture

Also, the scavenger hunt led to the sculptures of the Three Soldiers. The sculptures were developed in 1984 by a team of artists such as Jay Hall Carpenter (Kleiner, 2013). The entire body of the sculptures were designed using bronze. The significance of the sculptures was to commemorate the Vietnam War. Also, it was structured as a complement to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Center, which was created to honor all the war veterans who participated in the Vietnam War. The sculptures of the Three Soldiers have a great significance to the citizens of the U.S. It is also a major attraction site for tourists in Washington D.C.

The statue of the Boy Scouts Memorial and the statue of the Three Soldiers have only a single aspect in similarity. That is bronze was employed in their composition. Arguably, bronze is a high-quality raw material that can be employed to make sculptures. This aspect is attributed the malleability and ductility capabilities of bronze. Nevertheless, the two statues have a distinct dissimilarity in that they were both developed to commemorate different functions. Additionally, the two statues have adequately achieved their purposes, though different for each statue. As such, it cannot be stated that one statue has been more effective in fulfilling its purpose in comparison to the other.

Figure 4: The picture shows the Three Soldiers sculptures situated in the Washington D.C.

Item 3: Three Types of Greek Capitals

Doric Capital

It is regarded to be the simplest of all classical orders. The capital features the abacus that is set above an ovolo molding. It also has an astragal collars on its lower section. The convexity of the Doric Capital is at the top as well as the bottom of the capital. A delicate uniting curve normally unites the two. During the scavenger hunt, we visited the Colosseum of Rome to study the Greek Capitals. The structure is also referred as the Flavian Amphitheater. It is situated at the heart of the city of Rome in Italy, and it is built of sand and concrete. It is considered as the largest amphitheater to have ever been built in the world. The location of the structure is Piazza Del Colosseum, Roma, Italy (Ring, 2013).

The guide at the monument explained that is estimated that the Colosseum could hold between 50,000 to 85,000 persons and with an average of 65,000 spectators. In the ancient times, the Colosseum was employed for gladiatorial contests as well as for various public spectacles. It was also employed for drama presentations based on the ancient classical mythology as well as during the reenactment of various renowned battles that had occurred during the ancient periods. Nevertheless, its use as an entertainment center stopped during the start of the early medieval period. Instead, it started being employed for housing, Christian shrines, religious order quarters as well as workshops.

Ionic Capital

It is a capital that was normally employed by the Greeks to support a system of supports also known as the Ionic order. The capital is characterized by a distinctive form of column base, lintel, and capital. The Ionic capital is also characterized by a volute as well as spiral scroll-like carvings that are set on each side of the capital as its major decorations. Today, Ionic capitals are considered to be very rare in the medieval buildings that still exist. During the scavenger hunt, we visited the Erechtheum ruins in Rome that have the Ionic capital architecture designs (Hamlin, 2012). The architectural structure of the ruins was beautifully designed, and it communicates abundantly about the ancient Greek society's culture.

Corinthian Capital

It is regarded to be the most ornate of all the architectural orders used in the medieval times. It is characterized by a slim fluted column as well as elaborate capitals. The capitals are decorated with various shapes of acanthus leaves as well as scrolls. To view the Corinthian capital structures, we visited the Temple of Castor and Pollux (Bilde & Poulsen, 2008). It is situated in the center of Rome, and it is also among the most renowned tourist attraction site in Rome.

The creation of the Corinthian architectural structures can be attributed to the famous ancient Greek sculptor, Callimachus, who existed during the 5th century BC. The tour guide at the Temple of Castor and Pollux explained to us that the first creation of a building structure with the Corinthian order was the Choragic Monument of the Lysicrates. The Choragic Monument was structured around 335 BC.

Item 4: An Arcade

Gateway Arch

During the Scavenger hunt, we also visited the Gateway Arch that is situated in the St. Louis region of the United States. The arch is a 630-foot tall monument built of stainless steel. Today, it is also considered to be the largest human-made arch in the world. There are trams positioned on each side of the arch. Each tram has a chain of compartments that are capable of holding a maximum of five passengers at a time. The trip to the top of the tram takes a maximum of four minutes. Eero Saarinen designed the structure in 1947 (Campbell, 2013). Nevertheless, its construction started in 1963, and it was completed in 1965 (Campbell, 2013). It was then opened to the public in 1967 (Campbell, 2013). The tour guide at the Gateway Arch during the scavenger hunt explained to us that the monument cost $190 million in construction expenses (Campbell, 2013).

Item 5: A Bas-Relief Sculpture

Barberini Ivory

It is one of the most famous bas-relief sculptures in the world. During the scavenger hunt, we visited its location, which is in the Louvre, Paris. The sculpture was designed to depict the emperor, at the time, to be a triumphant victor. The sculpture was initially created using five rectangular plaques. The five plaques were then fitted together using tongue as well as groove joints. The sculpture is made up of ivory that is sculpted as well as mounted using precious stones.

The sculpture is a notable historical monument because it is also linked to the Brunhilda, who was a queen of Austrasia. It was also employed to indicate the important position that the queens in the Frankish Royal families had. The tour guide during the scavenger hunt explained that the Brunhilda queen at the time instructed the creators of the sculpture to inscribe the piece with the names of the Frankish Kings and later offer it to the church as a prayerful image.

Item 6: A Haut Relief Sculpture

During the search for a haut relief sculpture in the scavenger hunt, we visited the Mahabalipuram, haut relief rock that is situated in India. A round hump characterizes the sculpture, and it is also fully uncovered which means that the sculpture is independent of any form of a bottom. This sculpture work was obtained either by means of modeling, which was accompanied by casting through the use of bronze or stone. The sculpture is among the most renowned haut relief sculptures in the world.

Figure 5: The photograph of the renowned Mahabalipuram haut-relief in India.

Item 7: A Sculpture Made by The Subtraction Method

The scavenger hunts also led us to Broadway and Morris Street in the State of New York, where we had a chance to visit the 3-ton bronze sculpture of a bull. The sculpture is used to represent the New Yorks financial industry, and it was designed using the subtraction method. Subtraction is a methodology that entails carving a solid wood, stone, bone, clay or plaster in the form of a solid block into a desired shape or pattern.

At the start of the sculpting process, the sculptor forms a sketch of the shape as well as the size of the desired sculpture on the block and then removes large parts of a block being used for carving the sculpture. The final process entails creating finer details on the sculpture by employing smaller precision equipment. This process is also referred to as sanding. This is because the sculptors use sandpapers in order to remove small forms of imperfections that normally remain on the services of the prepared sculpture.

Item 8: A piece of Found Art

During the sc...