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Topic No.1
Venus of Willendorf
《维伦多尔夫的维纳斯》
Carving is a subtractive technique in which a sculptor uses a sharp instrument such as a knife， gouge， or chisel to remove material from a hard substance such as bone， wood， or stone.
After an image is shaped， it can be sanded， .led， or polished.
Perhaps the most famous Paleolithic sculpture is the so-called Venus of Willendorf， a striking .gure carved out of limestone and dated from 25，000 BC to 21，000 BC.
Although this .gure can be held in the palm of one’s hand， it is a monumental object with a sense of organic form.
The rhythmic arrangement of oval shapes emphasizes the head， breasts， torso， and thighs.
The scale of these elements in relation to the whole is quite large， while the facial features， neck， and lower legs are virtually eliminated.
The arms， resting on the breasts， are so undeveloped as to be hardly noticeable.
What was her function in her cultural context? In the absence of written records， we can only speculate. Clearly， the artist emphasized those parts of the body related to reproduction and nursing.
Furthermore， comparison of the front with the side and back shows that， although the Venus is a sculpture in the round， more attention has been lavished on the front.
The exaggeration of the breasts and pelvis has led some scholars to conclude that the Venus of Willendorf represented a fertility goddess.
Topic No.2
Cave Paintings of Lascaux
拉斯科洞穴壁画
Since 1875 archeologists have found painted and engraved images on cave walls in Europe， Africa， Australia， and North America. The most famous of these discoveries was made in 1945 at Lascaux in southern France.
Dubbed “the Sistine Chapel of prehistory”， Cave of Lascaux is a complex of caves in southwestern France decorated with some of the most impressive cave paintings in the world.
Lascaux prehistoric paintings are estimated to be about 17，000 years old. They are among the most well-known artistic creations of Paleolithic humans. Most of the cave paintings are located quite far from the entrance.
The most famous cave painting is The Great Hall of the Bulls， where cows， horses， and deer are depicted. One cow in the painting has a length of 5.2 meters， which is the largest animal painting ever discovered in the cave.
As one key milestone in our evolutionary past， art is seen as an expression of symbolic thought and of humans starting to look beyond their material lives.
Most of the paintings depict animals found in the surrounding landscape， such as horses， bison， mammoths， deer， lions， bears， and wolves.
Scholars have long debated the meaning of so-called “cave art.” Some hold that it served as part of a hunting ritual. Others contend that it was associated with rituals of fertility.
Still others read certain abstract markings on cave walls as lunar calendars， notational devices used to predict seasonal change or the seasonal migration of animals. The cave itself may have served as a ceremonial chamber， shrine， or council room.
