 |
| Echo |
Artist:Alexandre Cabanel (French, Montpellier 1823–1889 Paris)
Date:1874
Medium:Oil on canvas
Dimensions:38 1/2 x 26 1/4 in. (97.8 x 66.7 cm)
Classification:Paintings
Credit Line:Gift of Mary Phelps Smith, in memory of her husband, Howard Caswell Smith, 1965
Accession Number:65.258.1
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 800
In Greek mythology, the beautiful nymph Echo is cursed by the goddess Hera and can only repeat the last words said to her. Unable to communicate with the man she loves, Echo retreats to the mountains and pines away until just her voice remains. Cabanel shows the nymph with her mouth agape and her hands at her ears, is if startled by reverberating sounds. The painter’s work epitomizes the mannered elegance and polish of the academic style. Nineteenth-century critics often deemed such idealized portrayals of the nude unconvincing, but many preferred them to more realistic depictions, which seemed shockingly indecorous.
Copyright Image
https://images.metmuseum.org
Comments
Post a Comment