INSPIRATION: Marble Portrait Bust of a Man

My recent classically-inspired mixed-media works on raw canvas - Nemo propheta in patria, Progenitor & Patrician - were inspired by the Roman portraits in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NY. In their collection you will find gods, emperors, senators, and all manner of citizens of Rome, all beautifully carved in marble. One particular piece always caught my attention - the Marble Portrait Bust of a Man:

Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art - check out this link for a 360 view of the portrait

I even sketched this piece in black and white ink during a visit to the Met in 2017:

This piece, and the others in the Met's collection, display a penetrating gaze and distinct personalities that traverse the thousands of years that separate their subject and ourselves. As with the above image, they often possess a softness or vagueness due to damage and time. These characteristics only serves to enhance their personality and emphasize that great chasm of history.