December 2012: Dr. Bryan R. Just, ‘Dancing into Dreams: Maya Vase Painting of the Ik’ Kingdom’

December 9

Dr. Bryan R. Just Dancing into Dreams: Maya Vase Painting of the Ik’ Kingdom

Dr. Just will explore the exceptional eighth-century artistic production of a single Maya center, namely the Ik’ kingdom, located in modern-day north-central Guatemala.  Ik’-kingdom vases are among the finest ever produced by the ancient Maya, acknowledged particularly for their naturalistic color, veristic portraiture, skillful rendition of graceful movement, and elegantly fluid, calligraphic line.  Several Ik’ vases were also signed by their painters—a convention attested in the ancient Americas only among the Late Classic Maya of this region.  Additionally, since most Ik’ vessels present hieroglyphically-labeled historic events, they facilitate consideration of various key aspects of courtly Maya social practice, including costumed dance, tribute presentation, feasting, and royal accession.  Synthesizing archaeological, hieroglyphic, and art historical information, Dr. Just will reveal the rich courtly culture that inspired the art and served as the context for the vases’ use, both as historical records and as vessels for the consumption of liquid chocolate.  The impact on our understanding of this ancient history caused by problematic modern practices such as illicit looting and heavy-handed restoration will also be considered.

Bryan R. Just is the Peter Jay Sharp, Class of 1952, Curator and Lecturer of the Art of the Ancient Americas at the Princeton University Art Museum.  Just received a B.A. in Archaeological Studies and the History of Art from Yale University (1995) and an M.A. (1999) in Art History and a Ph.D. (2006) in Art History and Linguistics, both from Tulane University. A specialist ancient Maya art history, his recent publications include Mysteries of the Maize God (in The Record, Princeton University Art Museum), “Modifications of Ancient Maya Sculpture” (in Res: Anthropology and Aesthetics) and “In Extenso Almanacs in the Madrid Codex” (in The Madrid Codex: New Approaches to Understanding an Ancient Maya Manuscript).  His exhibition Dancing into Dreams: Maya Vase Painting of the Ik’ Kingdom, to be accompanied by a catalogue of the same name, will be on view at the Princeton University Art Museum from October 6, 2012 through February 17, 2013.

Discover more: http://www.princeton.edu/artandarchaeology/faculty/bjust/