The March of Time (1997-1999)
The March of Time

Each rabbit in The March of Time relates to a particular work of art; the title of each piece is the approximate date of the artwork. For example, -1850 refers to the sculpture fragment in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of the Egyptian king Sesostris. Thus, displayed on the wall, the collection of rabbits give a brief history of art and the history of humanity. The time chart that accompanies the installation locates each rabbit and includes comments about the related work of art.   

-12500    Hedonist carves voluptuous Venus of Willendorf in Austria.

-3200    Egyptian corpse (Ginger) consumes grave offerings before afterlife.

-2150    Gudea from Lagash commissions royal portrait to reinforce his intimacy with the gods.

-1850    Sculpture of Egyptian Pharaoh Sesostris reveals a pessimistic, troubled king.

-1450    The architect Senmut  appears with block-like body in a curious form of portraiture.

-600    Gorgon carved on pediment of Temple of Artemis at Corfu wards off evil.

-525    Greeks sculpt smirking nude males referred to as Kouros.

-340    Mausolus commissions tomb sculptures, including Demeter, to imply divine kinship.

-70    The Goddess of Joy, Euphrosyne, appears in numerous works of art with her two sisters.

290    Seated Budda wears Roman toga.

547    Theodora is deceptively represented as a divine presence in apse mosaic at San Vitale.

685    Pacal (a.k.a. Shield) buried in splendor and mystery at Palenque.

816    Monk from Reins depicts St. Mark as a man crazed with inspiration.

950    German artisan carves Christ with tragic intensity and gory details.

1005    Otto III commissions illuminated manuscript featuring bug-eyed St. Luke.

1099    Unique Japanese deity Zao Gongen’s aggressive stance repels troublemakers.

1150    Sheela-na-Gigs carved to celebrate woman’s body but inspire awe and terror.
   
1432    Jan Van Eyck daringly paints pensive, ripened Eve for altarpiece at Ghent.
 
1454    Donatello portrays Mary Magdalene in old age—emaciated and repentant.
    
1540    Henry VIII’s ruthless nature and magnificent corpulence is revealed by Hans Holbein.

1550    Bronzino portrays shifty-eyed aristocrat as intelligent youth.
 
1637    Rembrandt reveals the disappearance of the angel Raphael from hard-luck home.

1780    Nude male in William Blake’s Glad Day sheds diaphanous prom dress.

1814    Goya records the shocking massacre of the citizens of Madrid in The Third of May.

1900    Guardian Figure carved in Gabon protects ancestor skulls.

1952    Painter Willem DeKooning represents woman with giant breasts and demon face.

1983    Robert Mapplethorpe photographs seductive bodybuilder Lisa Lyon emerging from the sea.

2250    X-Man created through artistic cloning.

References:

Clark, Kenneth, The Nude: A Study in Ideal Form
Croix, Horst de la; Tansey, Richard G., Art Through the Ages
Francastel, P., Medieval Painting
Grun, Bernard, The Timetables of History
Getty, Adele, Goddess
Janson, H.W., The History of Art
Koehler, Wilhelm, Rembrandt
Various, The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide
Various, The Mysterious Maya

Judith Page 
1999