Bazin, Germain. The History of World Sculpture. New York Graphic Society, 1968.
I discovered The History of World Sculpture by conducting a search on the art library’s online catalog. After finding the book’s call number. I received assistance from a librarian in locating the publication on the oversized book section of the Sloane Art Library. As inferred from the title, the amount of information in this publication was daunting, however, once I located the section specifically on Roman sculpture, I found that the information it offered would be useful for my research, particularly because of the background it provided on how the Romans adopted Greek styles. Translated from French, I did an online search on the author, Germain Bazin, and discovered …show more content…
For my research, I focused my reading on the sections featuring Bacchus, the Roman name for Dionysos, and Apollo. In regard to Apollo, the book details how there were an array of distinct progressions that claimed Apollo’s patronage, including music, healing, and prophecy, all of which have been incorporated into depictions of the god. On the other hand, Bacchus was a mythological figure who was notorious for his drinking habits, and was often accompanied by unruly satyrs, and kept the company of people who did not just revel, but were of “the sort who mutilate animals with their bare hands.” Likewise, the figure of Bacchus has often been associated with desire, madness, and celebration in art that alternates with depictions of him as both a young and old man, albeit the former of the two was found to be more …show more content…
In this particular instance, I was not looking for a specific book, as opposed to searching for any number of books that related to the general subject for which I was investigating. Consequently, I found Roman Art in Context by perusing the library’s section on the Roman art, and after flipping through the contents of the publication, I deemed it a potential source for my research. I validated its reliability after conducting another online search on the author and discovered that Eve D’Ambra was a prominent professor in Vassar College’s art department, who has numerous publications to her name, with her research focusing specifically on Roman sculpture and portraiture. Given her background and the broad overview her publication provides on Roman art, I regarded her book to be a valuable and reliable source in my own