Europa and the Bull 1975

Reuben Nakian’s bronze sculpture captures the moment of abduction in the Greek myth of Europa and the Bull. I can almost feel Nakian wrestling with the malleable clay, building up the forms with thick, expressive gestures. Nakian would have been so at home in the company of painters, like a de Kooning or a Guston, because his handling of material feels so painterly. Look at the rippling muscles of the bull and Europa’s outstretched arms. I wonder if Nakian was thinking about the tension between classical restraint and modernist freedom. The rough, almost violent, application of bronze communicates a sense of primal energy. It's a conversation between the artist, the material, and the myth itself. Nakian's sculpture is about transformation and passion, where the boundaries between human and animal, desire and danger, blur and merge. It’s a real balancing act.