My proposal for perfect copies requires that they be just that -- perfect -- or, at least indistinguishable from the originals to expert eyes.
So Michael could marvel at the workmanship of the copy as much as of the original. Except that --- his marveling isn't just in response to what he sees, is it? As he tells us -- it's his knowing that "there isn't a molecule of cadmium or alizarine or phthalocyanine in them" -- or his knowing that "they didn't have heat sensors, except perhaps guardian cones, or thermocouples." He wants the piece to serve as evidence of all the stuff he's read about art history -- or no -- he's not really performing the function of a professional art historian or archeologist -- he just wants his memory of that history to serve as evidence of his learning -- and for that special thrill of self recognition he needs to know that the piece in front of him is authentic. No -- it's not the same thing as the apotropaic power (gosh, I love that word!) - but it's irrational all the same -- i.e. his knowledge of art history is not diminished one jot by the fact that he is looking at a perfect copy instead of an authentic original. BTW -- regarding the "Persian" Bull at the Oriental Institute -- my beef with that is not that it's not 100% original -- but that it's poorly done. Aesthetically -- it's weak -- not because it's modern -- but because, unlike the ancient Persians, the scholars at the Oriental Institute did not care enough to hire the very best sculptors that money could buy. The fellows who modeled that plaster bull were probably technical assistants getting paid the low wages that their sculptural ability deserved. The ancient Persian aristocracy -- like many aristocrats around the world -- were experienced and astute aesthetes. The directors of the Oriental Institute were just archeologists. _____________________________________________________________ Click for free quote on refinancing your mortgage. http://thirdpartyoffers.netzero.net/TGL2211/fc/Ioyw6ijmOafx3iEhMGzYXpu5gnO8ZB fVpNKarqie61AjHr72y1aB2M/?count=1234567890
