Neoclassicism

THE DEATH OF MARAT BY DAVID: ANALYSIS AND CURIOUS FACTS On July 13th 1793 the news of the death of Marat, a protagonist of the French Revolution, shocked France. Marat was stabbed to death and his murderer, Charlotte Corday, four days after the assassination and after a summary trial, was executed by guillotine. In this post you’ll […]

THE TURKISH BATH BY INGRES: EVERYTHING YOU MUST KNOW ABOUT THE PAINTING The Turkish Bath by Ingres is an exercise of imagination! It’s one of those masterpieces originated from the creative mind of a great artist who, inspired by the description given by Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, wife of the British ambassador to Turkey, painted a […]

THE GRANDE ODALISQUE BY INGRES: MEANING AND DESCRIPTION OF THE PAINTING In front of a beautiful woman such as the Grande Odalisque by Ingres I can’t help wondering who she is and why an artist decided to paint her giving her immortality. After describing The Source by Ingres I decided to write a new post […]

PSYCHE REVIVED BY CUPID’S KISS: WHERE IS LOCATED, WHO COMMISIONED IT TO CANOVA, WHAT IT REPRESENTS Psyche revived by Cupid’s kiss is one of the most beautiful and famous sculpture groups by Antonio Canova. It represents the meeting between two young lovers and is the metaphor of the eternal struggle between rationality and instinct, between […]

WORKS BY INGRES: THE SOURCE Works by Ingres. When I visited the exhibition dedicated to Impressionism in Treviso I was impressed that the among the first paintings on shown there were some portraits by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, a leading figure of Neoclassical painting, a style which would be overwhelmed by Impressionism. But it’s the first time […]

ANTONIO CANOVA, LIFE AND WORKS Antonio Canova was born in Possagno, near Treviso, on November 1st 1757. Antonio’s father was a stonecutter and his paternal grandfather led him into the art of sculpting. Canova soon showed great talent, and was sent to Venice where he spent some time at the most important sculptures’ studios, and […]

CANOVA IN VENICE: CANOVA AT THE GALLERIE DELL’ACCADEMIA IN VENICE Canova in Venice. One of the greatest novelties of the new tour of the exhibition at the Gallerie dell’Accademia, which I have recently described in a special post dedicated to the new rooms set in the Palladian Wing, is the exhibition of the works by […]

Daedalus and Icarus by Antonio Canova In this post I will tell you the story of one of Antonio Canova’s masterpieces that you can admire in this room.In the centre of the vedute room of the Museo Correr in Venice is the marble group Daedalus and Icarus (1777-1779), an early masterpiece by Antonio Canova.