HIERONYMUS BOSCH, DEATH AND THE MISER

[sound effects: door creaking open, coins clanking, slithering noises.]

FEMALE NARRATOR

         What a creepy scene! A man sits in bed. He has many visitors, some slithering and scurrying about! Look for the green-brown demon holding a fiery lantern, who peers down from the top of the bed, a creature wearing a black hood with white wings, crouched near a low wall, two grey critters scurrying under a chest, a rat-faced beast inside the chest, holding a bag of gold, an old man who drops a few coins in.

         There’s a second moneybag in this scene. Do you see it? A little monster peeps out from under the bed-curtains and tempts the man in bed with a bag of gold. But he isn’t the only one trying to get the man’s attention. An angel is trying to get the man to look up and notice a crucifix in the window.

         But something else entirely has caught his attention – the skeleton entering the room, an arrow in its hand. What’s going to happen next? 

      This painting is called Death and the Miser. The skeleton represents Death and the man is the Miser. He’s on his deathbed.

         This painting has a moral: it’s a warning against greed. The miser has a choice between the moneybag offered by the little monster and the pleas of the angel. Do you think the man will choose good or evil before he dies?

      This painting was made in the 15^th century by an artist called Hieronymus Bosch. It was painted on wood panel. Look at its long, narrow shape. It may have been one panel of a huge painting that decorated an altar. The other panels – now  missing – would have told more of the story.

JOSEPH MALLORD WILLIAM

TURNER, KEELMEN HEAVING IN COALS BY MOONLIGHT

[sound effects: water lapping against the boats, men working, shovels scraping, men shouting in the distance]

FEMALE NARRATOR

         What’s going on here?

         This painting shows a view of the busy harbor. Location: Tyneside, a town in northeast England. This region was England’s mining and industrial center. In the 19^th century, and coal was an essential source of power.

         On the right side of the painting skilled boatmen, known as keelmen, are hard at work. Their job was to transport the coal from the mines, up the Tyne river to the harbor. They navigated the shallow river in flat-bottomed boats called keels. When they arrived at the harbor, they would shovel the coal from their keel into the large ships docked there.

         Can you tell what time of day is it? The fiery torchlights are clues. The keelmen loaded the ships at night, so that they could depart with the morning tide and take the cargo down the coast to London.

         Although this painting describes an industry important to England during the Industrial Revolution, it is not the focus of the composition – the true subject of this painting is light.

         A full moon illuminates the cloudy sky and its reflection glitters on the smooth surface of the water. The artist, J.M.W. Turner experimented with painting techniques to convey mood and atmosphere. Looking closely at the surface – can you can see that he painted some areas more thickly than others? The silvery-white moon and the yellow-orange torch-lights, for example. Turner created a textured surface, and these raised areas literally catch light on the surface of the canvas.

Joseph Mallord William Turner was born in London in 1775 and lived there all his life. He traveled for inspiration and filled sketchbooks with his observations. He was especially interested in nature, weather conditions, and the sea. In 1818, Turner visited the town of Tyneside but it wasn’t until 17 years later that he made this oil painting of the place he’d visited. Back in his London studio, his sketchbooks served as a memory bank for ideas. Why do you think Turner choose to paint this scene at night?

JOHN SINGLTON COPLEY, WATSON AND THE SHARK

         [sound effects: splashing]

ACTOR: WATSON

   Help!

ACTOR: MALE
Grab the rope! Hurry, hurry, it’s getting closer! Get him in the boat!

FEMALE NARRATOR

         A 14-yearold boy thrashes in the water as a terrifying shark approaches. The shark draws closer, opening its powerful jaws to attack, revealing sharp, dangerous teeth. The boy’s mouth and eyes are wide open in fear. He and the shark are just inches away from one another. He reaches his hand up toward his rescuers.

         In the boat, just beyond the boy’s reach, sailors are trying to save the boy. Look for a man pointing a harpoon, men steering the rowboat toward the boy, a man holding a rope that dangles into the sea, two young sailors leaning out of the boat, desperately trying to reach the boy, and an older sailor hanging on to the shirt of his shipmate. Study the sailors’ faces. How would you describe their expressions? Anxious? Scared? Panicked? Determined? What do you think will happen next?

         This is a painting of a true story. In 1749 a young sailor named Brook Watson was swimming in the harbor of Havana, Cuba, when he was attacked by a shark. His shipmates rushed to help him. The artist decided to depict the scariest moment of the story. The shark had already attacked Watson twice, pulling him underwater and biting off his right foot. Notice that the water in the lower left corner is tinted red with Watson’s blood.

The shark circles around for the third time. The sailors struggle to rescue Watson and kill the shark.

The sailors were heroes: Watson did survive the shark attack! It took him 3 months to recover. Because he lost his foot—his leg was amputated below the knee and he was fitted with a wooden leg.

         Watson grew up to be a successful businessman and politician in England. Almost 30 years after the attack, he hired John Singleton Copley to paint his miraculous survival story. Watson hoped it would inspire others to overcome life’s challenges.

Copley was an American artist who moved to England during the time of the American Revolution. Because he had never been to Cuba, he studied maps and prints of Havana in order to create an accurate background view of the harbor’s buildings and ships. Copley had never seen a tiger shark, and he was a little less successful with that depiction. Notice the shark’s oddly shaped nostrils, strange lips and ear. It may not be an entirely accurate portrayal, but it’s still pretty scary!

AUGUSTUS SAINT-GAUDENS, SHAW MEMORIAL

         [music: Civil War march]

MALE NARRATOR

         These are soldiers going off to fight in a war. A drummer leads the march. Who is their leader?

         The man on the horse is colonel of the regiment. He too is in uniform and carries a sword. Look at his horse, whose tail switches, and head and neck strain against the reigns. Now, move around the sculpture and study the soldiers’ faces. Some look young, others older. Some have beards, while others are clean-shaven. How would you describe their expressions? Serious? Scared? Determined? Hopeful? Proud? Sad?

         This sculpture memorializes a real event in American history. It shows Colonel Shaw and his regiment as they marched off on May 28, 1863, to fight in the American Civil War. These brave soldiers were members of the Massachusetts 54^th Regiment. 1,000 African-American men volunteered to join this regiment to fight against slavery. Their leader was Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, a young white man from Boston whose parents were abolitionists.

What happened to these men? The 54^th Regiment traveled from Boston to lead an attack against one of the forts protecting Charleston, South Carolina. Sadly, almost half of the soldiers who stormed the fort were killed, captured, or died later from their wounds. Colonel Shaw was also killed. The bravery and determination of the 54^th Regiment earned great respect and inspired other African Americans to join the Union army, eventually contributing to victory for the pro-Union states.

LEONARDO DA VINCI, GINEVRA DE’

            BENCI

ACTOR: GINEVRA

            Buon giorno. My name is Ginevra de’ Benci. I posed for Leonardo da Vinci 500 years ago.

MALE NARRATOR

            Leonardo was 22 when he painted Ginevra. She was about 16. Both were living in Florence, Italy. It was Leonardo’s first portrait.

            Ginevra is wearing a brown dress with elegant details: blue ribbon lacing, gold edges, and a sheer white blouse fastened with a delicate gold pin. The black scarf draped over her slender shoulders and neck was a fashionable accessory at the time.

            Her golden-brown hair is parted in the middle and pulled back in a bun. Leonardo used the end of his brush to help create the ringlets around her face.

            Look at Ginevra’s porcelain complexion, her pink cheeks, and lips drawn together in a quiet line. She looks out with brown, almond shaped eyes but her expression is hard to read. Leonardo himself said:

ACTOR: LEONARDO

            “A face is not well done unless it expresses a state of mind.”

NARRATOR

            What do you suppose Ginevra might be thinking about?

ACTOR: GINEVRA

   It’s my secret.

NARRATOR

            Ginevra is shown in an outdoor scene. On the right, small trees line the banks of a pool of water. A town is nestled in the hills under a misty sky. Behind Ginevra’s head is a juniper bush, a large evergreen with sharp, spiky leaves. Ginepro is the Italian word for juniper, so this is a witty pun on Ginevra’s name!

After Leonardo finished this portrait, someone asked him to create a painting on the reverse. Now walk around to look at the back.

ACTOR: GINEVRA

            Virtutem Forma Decorat. This is my personal motto written in Latin on the scroll. In English it means “Beauty adorns virtue.”

NARRATOR

            Ginevra was a poet, and the people who knew her praised her for her intellect and virtuous character. While the front of the painting is a portrait of her appearance, this side is painted with symbols that describe her inner character. This is called an emblematic portrait.

            Follow the scroll from the left side where it wraps around a stalk of laurel to the sprig of juniper in the center and finally, to its curl around the palm branch on the right. The laurel is meant to represent Ginevra’s intelligence. The juniper identifies her by name, and the palm branch symbolizes her strong moral values.

Imagine that you could have Leonardo paint your portrait. Think of the facial expression, clothing, and words or phrase you would ask him to use to capture what makes you unique.

JACQUES-LOUIS DAVID, THE

            EMPEROR NAPOLEON IN HIS

            STUDY AT THE TUILERIES

         [sound effect: clock ticking]

MALE NARRATOR

         The clock reads 4:13 in the morning. The candles on the desk have burned almost completely down. Who is this man and why has he been up all night?

ACTOR: NAPOLEON

         Bonjour, I am Napoleon Bonaparte, ruler of France. Welcome to my study.

NARRATOR

         What does this portrait tell us about Napoleon? Look closely for clues. Start with his clothing.

         Napoleon is wearing the blue, white, and red uniform of a general in the French military. With all of his shiny gold and silver medals, we can tell he has been brave in battle. On the floor behind the left side of the desk, is a half-rolled map used for military plans. Did you notice Napoleon’s sword resting on the chair?

         But wait! There are more clues that Napoleon is an important ruler. It appears as if he has just pushed back his chair, rumpling the carpet. He has risen from the desk, where he had been sitting and writing with the quill pen that now rests on the edge.

         See the rolled paper on the right of the desk with the letters “CODE?” The artist wanted you to think that Napoleon has been up all night creating the Napoleonic Code, a new system of laws for the people of France.

         Napoleon Bonaparte became ruler of France in 1799 and crowned himself Emperor in 1804. This portrait was painted when Napoleon was 43 years old, by the artist Jacques-Louis David. If you look closely, you might be able to find David’s name in the painting. Look at the bottom left of the picture: David put his name on the map as a way of signing and dating his painting!

         David created many images of Napoleon, including portraits and important events during his reign. In fact, Napoleon appointed David to the important position of First Painter. Two years after David made this painting, Napoleon was defeated in battle and overthrown as the ruler.

ACTOR: NAPOLEON

      I surrender. Vive la France.

EDOUARD MANET, THE OLD MUSICIAN

ACTOR: OLD MUSICIAN

   Bonjour! May I play you a tune?

         [violin music]

ACTOR: OLD MUSICIAN

         My name is Jean Lagrene. I was a street musician in Paris, a hundred years ago. I earned my living performing for passers-by. I also worked as a model for artists, like the painter Edouard Manet who made this picture. If not for him, I might have been forgotten.

FEMALE NARRATOR

         Take a closer look at the people who have gathered around the old musician. Find the barefoot girl holding a baby. Beside her are two young boys, one with his arm around the other. A man in a dark cape and top hat watches from behind. And to the far right stands an elderly man with a white beard and long dark top coat. What a strange group of people to find together in a painting. What could this painting be about?

         Artist Edouard Manet was interested in capturing the modern world around him. Regularly walking about Paris, he often used people from everyday life as models for his work. And, his paintings chronicle the changes taking place in the French capital, which, at the time, was being transformed into a grand city with tree-lined boulevards, beautiful buildings, and new restaurants and cafes. But you don’t see any of them here! That’s because Manet is showing the less glamorous side of modern life, painting people from a poor area on the edge of Paris. The old musician plays for passers-by, hoping for money.

      [sound effect: coins clanking]

ACTOR: OLD MUSICIAN

      Merci.