Oviri is an 1894 ceramic sculpture by the French artist Paul Gauguin. It depicts a Tahitian goddess of mourning, with long pale hair, large breasts, and wild eyes. She smothers a wolf with her feet, while clutching a cub in her arms. Art historians have suggested multiple complex interpretations; its alternative title, "Savage", may refer to Gauguin's own view of himself. The work's form and tone was inspired by a number of ancient sources, including Majapahit mummies and an Assyrian relief of a master of animals. Other possible influences include preserved skulls from the Marquesas Islands, figures found at Borobudur, and a 9th-century Mahayana Buddhist temple in central Java. Gauguin made three casts, each in partially glazed stoneware. The original is housed at the Musée d'Orsay, in France. It was exhibited at the 1906 Salon d'Automne where it was seen by Pablo Picasso, who used it as the basis for one of the figures in his Les Demoiselles d'Avignon.
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oviri_(Gauguin)
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
1018:
The German–Polish War ended with the signing of the Peace of Bautzen between Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor, and the Piast ruler of Poland, Bolesław I. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peace_of_Bautzen
1607:
Low-lying places around the coasts of the Bristol Channel of Britain were flooded, possibly by a tsunami, resulting in an estimated 2,000 deaths. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bristol_Channel_floods,_1607
1948:
Nathuram Godse fatally shot Mahatma Gandhi, the political and spiritual leader of India and the Indian independence movement, at Birla House in Delhi. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahatma_Gandhi
1968:
Vietnam War: Forces of the Viet Cong and the Vietnamese People's Army launched the Tet Offensive to strike military and civilian command and control centers throughout South Vietnam. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tet_Offensive
2000:
Kenya Airways Flight 431 crashed into the Atlantic Ocean near Côte d'Ivoire shortly after takeoff, killing 169 on board. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenya_Airways_Flight_431
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
soft-spoken: Having a pleasant, gentle, mild manner of speech; speaking gently or quietly. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/soft-spoken
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
Human kindness has never weakened the stamina or softened the fiber of a free people. A nation does not have to be cruel to be tough. --Franklin D. Roosevelt https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Franklin_D._Roosevelt
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