Running Roman Warrior, Seen from Back n.d.

Curator: Philippe Louis Parizeau’s “Running Roman Warrior, Seen from Back,” rendered with ink, graphite, chalk, and pencil on paper, catches the eye immediately. What’s your take on it? Editor: Well, first blush? I feel a desperate urgency. He's really hoofing it, isn’t he? Makes me wonder what’s chasing him. And, in a funny way, I admire his commitment to period-appropriate gear even while running for his life. Curator: It's interesting you say "chasing him," because the figure's pose communicates action but tells us little about direction, goal, or if our protagonist is fleeing or in pursuit. This piece exists as both drawing and print; in examining that interplay, we may consider how its circulation through prints impacted perceptions of Roman military culture and masculinity during that period. The figure itself also begs some questions regarding labor, class, and military conscription, as the running warrior is shown with only meager armament. Editor: That's a fine observation about how accessible this made such figures, democratizing the visual depiction of roman warriors and their equipment... You know, to me the use of ink wash creates this ethereal, almost dreamlike quality, softening the hard edges of the warrior. I imagine it’s challenging to sketch movement like this with such light tools; it’s almost as if we are seeing him in medias res, at the moment. It feels vulnerable and a bit melancholic, and a dash lonely, almost. Curator: And while we're looking closer, take notice of how the medium itself underscores certain narratives of labor: the readily-available pencil, chalk, and ink being implemented on inexpensive and easily circulated paper point toward a certain mode of artistic production and reception very different from fresco, sculpture, or mosaic. That’s fascinating to me. The original function of Roman imagery has clearly evolved. Editor: It certainly has! It has moved me. From historical artifact to emotional narrative, something of a paradox between process and passion. It really makes you think, doesn't it? Curator: Indeed.