The Muses

Edgar Miller
1930
Cast concrete from molds, plaster, white paint
L 3.9, W 1.8 m

This bas relief enshrining five muses, is the central and most important sculpture in the entire Glasner Studio. The work is both an allegorical representation of the artistic forces of humanity in nature, and a celebration of aesthetic form. While not officially titled, the piece has come to be known as The Muses by visitors to the Glasner Studio space.

The entire Glasner Studio home was designed as a Gesamtkunstwerk, which is a work of art that strives to make use of many different art forms. So it is only appropriate that above the entrance Miller would install a piece of art, marking the importance of all the arts and highlight the universality of all arts coming together under one roof. The bas relief portrays the allegories of Contemplation and Inspiration in the figures near a rainbow and a lightning bolt, respectively, at the top of the piece. Near them, the Sun gives life to the world below and carries down the five muses as expressed by Miller. Each muse represents a different artistic medium. Miller placed in each corner, from top left to bottom right, the muses of Dance, Music, Drama, and Visual Art. And at center (with the most prominence) the muse representing Architecture, who Miller believed represented the highest of humanities art forms, where science and technology blend with artistic expression and produce harmonious living environments.

On the opposite wall viewers can also see a broken copy of the cast-concrete mold of one of the muses, a draft that didn't make it into the final piece.

Learn more about Edgar Miller’s sculptural works by visiting the lecture “Sculpture as Text” by Marin Sullivan archive page.