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Actions Displays	Details Remove from selection Add to selection CollectionNg Eng Teng Collection Object numberN1997-0001-291-0 TitleHead of John the Baptist CreatorNg Eng Teng (1934 – 2001) DescriptionNg Eng Teng's Head of John the Baptist was produced in the initial years of Eng Teng's introduction to sculpture under the tutelage of the British sculptor, Jean Bullock. The decapitated head of John the Baptist marks a powerful visual imagery for the biblical drama involving the Roman ruler of Jerusalem, Herod Antipas, his new wife, Herodias and step-daughter Salome. John the Baptist had rebuked Herod for taking Herodias, who was previously married to his half-brother, as wife. As a result, John the Baptist had been imprisoned by Herod. Conspiring with her mother, Salome asked for the Baptist's head in a climatic moment that gathers the moral tension that had been simmering throughout the narrative. Eng Teng's portrayal of John the Baptist's head is a vivid and sensitive rendition of the historical moment. Facial features are delineated expressivley, especially the deep furrows and creases on the cheeks and forehead of the figure. Through the work, Eng Teng, still a young artist to sculpture at the time of producing the work, demonstrates a sculptural artist's foundational ability to reflect and express deep and complex psychological states through physiognomy. Object categorySculpture MaterialTerracotta clay, Paint, Lacquer Dimensions H: 16.5 cm L: 28 cm W: 20 cm Credit lineGift of Ng Eng Teng

Object numberN1997-0001-291-0

TitleHead of John the Baptist

CreatorNg Eng Teng (1934 – 2001)

DescriptionNg Eng Teng's Head of John the Baptist was produced in the initial years of Eng Teng's introduction to sculpture under the tutelage of the British sculptor, Jean Bullock. The decapitated head of John the Baptist marks a powerful visual imagery for the biblical drama involving the Roman ruler of Jerusalem, Herod Antipas, his new wife, Herodias and step-daughter Salome. John the Baptist had rebuked Herod for taking Herodias, who was previously married to his half-brother, as wife. As a result, John the Baptist had been imprisoned by Herod. Conspiring with her mother, Salome asked for the Baptist's head in a climatic moment that gathers the moral tension that had been simmering throughout the narrative. Eng Teng's portrayal of John the Baptist's head is a vivid and sensitive rendition of the historical moment. Facial features are delineated expressivley, especially the deep furrows and creases on the cheeks and forehead of the figure. Through the work, Eng Teng, still a young artist to sculpture at the time of producing the work, demonstrates a sculptural artist's foundational ability to reflect and express deep and complex psychological states through physiognomy.

Object categorySculpture

MaterialTerracotta clay, Paint, Lacquer

Dimensions

H: 16.5 cm
L: 28 cm
W: 20 cm

Credit lineGift of Ng Eng Teng

Details