Culture in Belgium [Kultur in Belgium] 1918

This little bronze medal, Culture in Belgium, was made by Paul Manship, sometime in the early 20th century. Can you imagine his hands shaping this, working with a metal tool, pressing into the surface? The imagery is brutal. A soldier carries away a woman, while another lies prone at their feet, as if she is dead. It makes me think about what it must have been like to live through a war. The terror, the violence, the feeling of utter helplessness. What was Manship thinking when he made this? Was he trying to capture the horror of war? Or was he trying to make a political statement? Manship was part of a generation of artists who were grappling with the changing world. They were experimenting with new forms and new ideas. And they were trying to make sense of a world that was increasingly complex and confusing. Artists are always responding to the world around them, and they're always in dialogue with each other. That's what makes art so exciting.