''Prometheus'' ( es, Prometeo) is a
fresco by Mexican muralist
José Clemente Orozco depicting the Greek Titan
Prometheus
In Greek mythology, Prometheus (; , , possibly meaning " forethought")Smith"Prometheus". is a Titan god of fire. Prometheus is best known for defying the gods by stealing fire from them and giving it to humanity in the form of technology, kn ...
stealing fire from the heavens to give to humans.
It was commissioned for
Pomona College
Pomona College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Claremont, California. It was established in 1887 by a group of Congregationalists who wanted to recreate a "college of the New England type" in Southern California. In 1925, it became t ...
's Frary Dining Hall and completed in June 1930,
becoming the first modern fresco in the United States.
It has received widespread critical acclaim.
Description
The mural is above a fireplace at the north end of the
refectory
A refectory (also frater, frater house, fratery) is a dining room, especially in monasteries, boarding schools and academic institutions. One of the places the term is most often used today is in graduate seminaries. The name derives from the Lat ...
of Frary Dining Hall at
Pomona College
Pomona College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Claremont, California. It was established in 1887 by a group of Congregationalists who wanted to recreate a "college of the New England type" in Southern California. In 1925, it became t ...
.
It consists of four panels: a main one facing the open eating area of the dining hall, two side ones, and an overhead one.
The Titan
Prometheus
In Greek mythology, Prometheus (; , , possibly meaning " forethought")Smith"Prometheus". is a Titan god of fire. Prometheus is best known for defying the gods by stealing fire from them and giving it to humanity in the form of technology, kn ...
of ancient Greek mythology dominates the main panel, reaching for
fire
Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material (the fuel) in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction products.
At a certain point in the combustion reaction, called the ignition point, flames a ...
to give to humans,
an act for which he would later be punished by
Zeus
Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label= genitive Boeotian Aeolic and Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label= genitive el, Δίας, ''Días'' () is the sky and thunder god in ancient Greek reli ...
. Surrounding his muscular, contorted figure is a crowd of people reacting to the gift, with some welcoming it and others scorning it.
The color palette features heavy use of reds, blues, and black.
File:Prometheus (Orozco) left side panel.jpg, Left panel
File:Prometheus (Orozco) overhead panel.jpg, Overhead panel
File:Prometheus (Orozco) right side panel.jpg, Right panel
Production
The mural was commissioned in 1930 for Pomona's newly built
neo-Gothic
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
men's dining hall by its architect,
Sumner Spaulding
Sumner Spaulding (1892–1952) was an American architect and city planner. He is best known for designing the Harold Lloyd Estate, Greenacres, in Beverly Hills, California, the Catalina Casino in Avalon on Santa Catalina Island, California, and ...
, and professor of art history and Hispanic studies .
Journalist
Alma Reed, a patron of Orozco's in New York, also helped the artist obtain the commission.
Students helped to raise $300
of Orozco's artist fee of $2500
().
Orozco stayed on campus for three months to complete the mural, living in a Clark dormitory, eating meals at Frary, and using students as models.
He was assisted in the painting by
Jorge Juan Crespo de la Serna, particularly with the side panels.
Interpretation
Art historians generally interpret the mural to be a metaphor for the challenges often faced by those seeking to expand the realm of knowledge, particularly from conservative authority figures.
The varying reactions of the crowd around Prometheus depicts that human development comes with both costs and benefits.
This theme connects to the mural's collegiate setting.
It also had personal resonance for Orozco, who faced resistance throughout his life from those opposed to his leftist political views.
The subject of fire was of interest to him because of a fireworks accident in which he lost his left hand when he was 21.
Reception and influence
''Prometheus'' received immediate critical acclaim upon completion.
''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...
'' art critic
Arthur Millier declared it a masterpiece, writing that Orozco "has energized that wall with his sublime conception of Prometheus bearing fire to cold, longing humanity until it lives as probably no wall in the United States lives today." He praised its "dynamic composition", describing it as "powerful beyond anything one can anticipate".
It was the first major work by a Mexican muralist in the United States,
and helped Orozco, who was relatively unknown at the time,
to subsequently land two other U.S. commissions, a mural room at
The New School
The New School is a private research university in New York City. It was founded in 1919 as The New School for Social Research with an original mission dedicated to academic freedom and intellectual inquiry and a home for progressive thinkers. ...
in New York City and ''
The Epic of American Civilization'' at
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native ...
in New Hampshire.
He would later become known as one of the "big three" of the
Mexican Mural Renaissance.
''Prometheus'' heavily influenced abstract expressionist
Jackson Pollock
Paul Jackson Pollock (; January 28, 1912August 11, 1956) was an American painter and a major figure in the abstract expressionist movement. He was widely noticed for his " drip technique" of pouring or splashing liquid household paint onto a hor ...
,
who first visited the mural in the summer of 1930
and called it "the greatest painting in North America".
Spaulding, Frary's architect, said "I feel as though the building would fall down if the fresco were removed."
Among contemporary students, it is often noted for its conspicuous lack of a penis;
Orozco likely omitted it to avoid offending puritanical sensibilities.
He attempted to add one when he visited Pomona several months after initially completing the mural, but it did not adhere properly to the wall.
Preservation and restoration
Pomona has undertaken various preservation and restoration efforts over the years. In 1980, a protective varnish was applied over the mural.
In 1982, structural damage was discovered in the wall behind the mural; it was subsequently reinforced.
In 1995, it was restored after being damaged by vandals.
In 2000, the college acquired preparatory drawings for the work from Orozco's relatives.
See also
*
Prometheus in popular culture
The figure and name of Prometheus from classical mythology has appeared in various art and literature.
Cartoons and comics
* Soviet director Aleksandra Snezhko-Blotskaya created two cartoons in which Prometheus appears - ''The Return from Olympus ...
*
1930 in art
Public art at Pomona College
*''
Dividing the Light
''Dividing the Light'', colloquially the Pomona College skyspace, is a 2007 skyspace art installation by James Turrell at Pomona College, his alma mater. It consists of a courtyard with a fountain nestled between two academic buildings with a ...
'' (Pomona College skyspace) by
James Turrell
James Turrell (born May 6, 1943) is an American artist known for his work within the Light and Space movement. Much of Turrell's career has been devoted to a still-unfinished work, ''Roden Crater'', a natural cinder cone crater located outsid ...
, 2007
*''
Genesis
Genesis may refer to:
Bible
* Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind
* Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...
'' by
Rico Lebrun
Rico (Federico) Lebrun (Naples, December 10, 1900 – Malibu, May 9, 1964) was an Italian-American painter and sculptor.
Early life
Lebrun was born in 1900 in Naples, Italy. He initially studied banking and journalism before taking art classes ...
, 1960
*''
The Spirit of Spanish Music
''The Spirit of Spanish Music'' is a sculpture by
Burt William Johnson (25 April 1890—27 March 1927).
It was commissioned by the Pomona College class of 1915 www.pomona.edu/ and
placed in the Lebus Court of the Mabel Shaw Bridges Hall of Music ...
'' by
Burt William Johnson
Burt William Johnson (April 25, 1890 – March 27, 1927)Moore, Nancy Dustin Wall. ''Dictionary of Art and Artists in Southern California Before 1930''. Los Angeles: Privately printed, 1975, p.130 was an American sculptor.
Biography
Johnson was b ...
, 1916
References
Bibliography
*
*
External links
''Prometheus'' information pageat the
Benton Museum of Art
The Benton Museum of Art at Pomona College, known colloquially as the Benton, is an art museum at Pomona College in Claremont, California. It was completed in 2020, replacing the Montgomery Art Gallery which had been home to the Pomona College ...
at Pomona College
''Prometheus'' permanent collection database recordat the
Benton Museum of Art
The Benton Museum of Art at Pomona College, known colloquially as the Benton, is an art museum at Pomona College in Claremont, California. It was completed in 2020, replacing the Montgomery Art Gallery which had been home to the Pomona College ...
at Pomona College
{{authority control
Pomona College
1930 paintings
1930s murals
Murals in California
Fresco paintings in the United States
Paintings by José Clemente Orozco
Prometheus
Paintings depicting Greek myths