So much Western art has been influenced by ancient mythology, and you could study how an ancient myth has been visualized by multiple artists.
A possible way to proceed:
- Be sure to read the myth in its ancient form(s) first--if you're not sure where a myth appears in ancient literature, consult Tripp's Meridian Handbook of Classical Mythology, which is on reserve in Bailey Library. (I also have a copy in my office you could look at.)
- A Google image search using proper names from your chosen myth should yield a variety of artworks for you to look at. Choose a handful that especially catch your eye.
- For each one, consider: What moment has is being presented? Does it gesture toward what happens before and after this moment in the myth? Are details added, changed, deleted? What is the overall "feel" of the piece? What does it seem to especially push a viewer to notice or think about, and how is that different from the written version(s) you read? How is it different from other visual representations?
Instead of a Google image search you could use a book like Phaidon's recently published Flying Too Close to the Sun, which brings together a variety of mythologically themed artworks from across the centuries. The book costs $60, but you could also order it through interlibrary loan.
You could also adapt this project to focus on a specific artist's use of Classical myth throughout their career (e.g., Sandro Botticelli, Edward Burne-Jones, Evelyn De Morgan, Odilon Redon, Cy Twombly). What patterns can you see in an artist's choice of myths, moments, and means of presentation? What does the use of myth enable an artist to do or explore?
