At the Metropolitan: Crown of the Virgin of the Immaculate Conception
The purpose of this piece was for the crown to adorn the sacred image of the Virgin Mary in the cathedral of Colombia. According to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, this practice of giving lavish gifts to sculptures of the Virgin Mary was common although controversial.
The aspects of this crown that pulled my intrigue were its beautiful symmetry, the balance between emeralds and gold, and the immaculate and detailed work. Although many principles of art say that artistic works are ‘more interesting’ this piece is extremely breathtaking and beautiful with its nearly perfect balance.
This crown was made with gold using a technique called repoussé and chasing where the artist creates the ornamental shapes by hammering the opposite side of the malleable gold surface.
The way that volume is implied is through the negative space in the 
upper part of the crown. The space that would be above where the head would be – see photo to the right. Having the implied volume in this very open negative space above the head of Mary is very symbolic, purposeful, and magnificent.
Overall, this crown was absolutely breathtaking and I immediately knew that this was the piece that I would choose.
My Neck Sculpture: The Wooden Scarf
I made this piece to be my neck sculpture because I liked having the uniformity of all of the wooden pieces but also to have the wearer have a choice in the way it could be worn. In these photos, the scarf is modeled with the ends in the back, creating a draping look at the front of the neck.
