Medusa

van Lívia Barbara Puskás @livia_barbara

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Introduction

The Medusa myth

Ovid writes in his Metamorphoses that Medusa was a beautiful girl who attracted men to her, but her only desire was to serve the goddess Athena in her temple. Poseidon, the god of the sea, raped the girl in the sacred place, which angered the goddess so much that she cursed Medusa out of jealousy and anger. The girl's hair became writhing snakes, and her face was distorted so horribly that anyone who looked at her immediately turned to stone. King Polydectes sent Perseus to the swamp where Medusa had fled to bring her the girl's head, with which he could defeat his enemies. Athena's hatred did not subside, so she gave Perseus a reflective shield so that he could defeat the gorgon without having to look at it.

The statue

Most often, only the severed head of Medusa is depicted in artwork. One of the most famous depictions is Cellini’s Perseus, which stands in Florence.

Since the 20th century, Medusa has gradually become a symbol of female anger.

The 235 cm high work by Italian-Argentine sculptor Luciano Garbati, titled Medusa with the Head of Perseus, is practically the reverse of this statue.

Although Garbati created the work in 2008, it really gained attention a decade later, when it was exhibited on the street opposite the criminal court in Manhattan. In doing so, the Medusa statue embodied the victory of survivors of sexual assault. This is where, among others, the biggest predator of the #MeToo movement, Harvey Weinstein, was sentenced. Although the statue was brought to court six months later, and Weinstein was unable to face Medusa, the embodiment of female rage, any future abuser can see the determined-looking woman holding the head of her mythical killer in her hands.

“By changing the ending of the myth, I did not make Medusa the victor, because, as in a tragedy, everyone loses. But this new ending gives Medusa strength: she fights because she must.”