26 Works, December 3rd. is Lord Frederic Leighton's day, his art, illustrated with footnotes #244

Frederic Leighton (1830–1896)

And the Sea Gave Up the Dead Which Were in It, exhibited 1892

Oil on canvas

H 228.6 x W 228.6 cm

Tate Britain

This is one of the most dramatic and powerful works, painted in the dark and solemn style of Leighton's late career. Leighton's tondo shows the resurrection of the dead, as described in the Book of Revelation: 'And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.' (Revelation 20:13) It is a terrifying yet essentially optimistic image, meditating on the theme of spiritual salvation.

The central group depicts a man, woman and child in various stages of 'awakening': 'The man is alive, his pulses are beating again, his flesh is reddening. His wife wears the greenish ghastly hue of death: his boy is breathing, but still pale and only half alive' (Edgcumbe Staley, quoted in Wilton & Upstone, p.259). All around them, the dead arise from newly-opened graves, some exposing their bodies to the light, others wrapped, mummy-like, in pale shrouds. More on this painting

Frederic Leighton, 1st Baron Leighton, PRA (3 December 1830 – 25 January 1896), known as Sir Frederic Leighton between 1878 and 1896, was a British painter, draughtsman, and sculptor. His works depicted historical, biblical, and classical subject matter in an academic style. His paintings were enormously popular, and expensive, during his lifetime.

Frederic Leighton

The Death of Brunelleschi, c. 1852

Oil, canvas

183 x 254 cm

Leighton House Museum

Leighton was keen on Brunelleschi's death by following the proceedings as they happened in a certain building in Florence. Filippo Brunelleschi was instrumental in the southern renaissance, a great figure in the architectural and civil engineering spheres.

 In the foreground of the painting, there is a building located in Florence, whose view reveals the view of the dome of the cathedral. Brunelleschi is shown a semi-recumbent in extremis in a chair accompanied by an array of buildings in the painting’s background that are seemingly defy the correctness in the projection of perspective. More on this painting

Frederic Leighton, 1st Baron Leighton  (1830–1896)

The Painter's Honeymoon, c. 1864

Oil on canvas

83.8 × 76.8 cm (32.9 × 30.2 in)

Museum of Fine Arts

In this romantic image, love is equated with art. In its evocation of the past and its precise, controlled style, the painting epitomizes the officially sanctioned academic practice of the late 19th century.

The Italian man who sat for the newly married painter occurs often in Leighton's work: he was apparently one of the artist's favorite models. Importantly, his hands are painted in fine detail, emphasizing how crucial they are to his work. The soft tones and accuracy with which Leighton painted the couple contrasts obviously with the harshness of the orange tree behind them. Leighton appears to have had difficulty in painting it – on close inspection, the oranges look as though they have been enameled. Generally, the composition and glowing color of the picture reflect the influence of such 16th-century Venetian painters as Giorgione and Titian. More on this painting

Frederic Leighton (1830–1896)

Mother and Child, c. 1865

Oil on canvas

H 48 x W 82 cm

Blackburn Museum and Art Gallery

Frederic, Lord Leighton

After Vespers, c. 1871

Oil on canvas

111.5 x 71.5 cm (43 7/8 x 28 1/8 in.)

Princeton University Art Museum

After Vespers epitomizes the delicacy and refinement that Leighton’s Victorian clients appreciated. The setting features mosaics evoking the interior of St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice. The painting’s subject, however, is less the magnificent sanctuary than an enigmatic young woman. Her gold earrings and beads mark her elevated social status, and she gently lifts her skirt to keep it off the dusty floor. Her melancholy expression hints, perhaps, at unrequited love. More on this painting

Frederic, Lord Leighton, P.R.A.

Portrait of Amy Augusta, Lady Coleridge, c. 1888

Oil on canvas

Private collection

Portrait of Amy Augusta Jackson, Lady Coleridge; almost full length, seated and directed to left, looking full face; holding and touch feathered fan on her lap; wearing corset and undergarments

The sitter was the daughter of Henry Baring Lawford of the Bengal Civil Service. She met the widowed Lord Coleridge on his return from a tour of America undertaken in 1883 as a guest of the New York Bar Association. They were married in London two years later. By then Lord Coleridge had risen to the very height of his profession, having been made Lord Chief Justice of England in 1880 by his friend Gladstone. The year this stunning portrait was exhibited he was presiding over the celebrated racing libel case Wood vs Cox. Three years later he famously called H.R.H. The Prince of Wales to the stand in the great Baccarat case, Gordon-Cummings vs. Wilson. More on this painting

Lord Frederic Leighton, British, b.1830, d.1896

Teresina, c. 1874

Oil on canvas board

604 x 495mm

Christchurch Gallery

A young Roman woman, Teresina, was first shown at the Royal Academy in 1876, and came to New Zealand for the Christchurch International Exhibition thirty years later. Its purchase by Canterbury Society of Arts was regarded as a notable coup.

Frederic Leighton, 1st Baron Leighton  (1830–1896)

The Music Lesson, c. 1877

Oil on canvas

93 × 95 cm (36.6 × 37.4 in)

Guildhall Art Gallery

The architecture depicted in The Music Lesson is based on studies Leighton completed during his 1873 journey to Damascus. The costumes worn by the women were most likely made of luxe; lustrous fabrics purchased by the artist on this trip. The instrument, a Turkish ‘saz’, was probably his own. These non-Western elements provide an exoticising flair to the work. More on this painting

Frederic, Lord Leighton, P.R.A., R.W.S

Catarina, c. 1878

Oil on canvas

Private collection

Catarina depicts an olive-skinned Italian model dressed in a traditional Campagna smock-shirt, with amber beads at her throat and jasmine flowers in her hair. The composition is beautifully simple, being free of all incidental detail or anecdotal association, nor is any information given about the identity or personality of the sitter.

Catarina lends itself to a purely aesthetic response, allowing the spectator to take delight in the softly-lit physiognomy, the colour of her blushed skin and pink lips reciprocated by the rich colouring and sfumato of her hair and the background. More on this painting

Frederic Leighton, 1st Baron Leighton  (1830–1896)

Light of the Harem, circa 1880

Oil on canvas

60 x 32 7/8 inches (152.4 x 83.8 cm)

Private collection

The Light of the Harem was painted in 1880 and depicts a woman arranging a scarf of Damascus silk around her hair while looking into a mirror held by a younger girl. It was one of the first appearances of Leighton's most celebrated model, Ada Alice Pullan who was known by her stage-name, Dorothy Dene. The model for the younger girl is sometimes identified as Connie Gilchrist, a girl who had been 'discovered' as she worked as a skipping-rope dancer at the Gaiety Theatre and who later became Countess Orkney. More on this painting

FREDERIC, LORD LEIGHTON, P.R.A. 1830 - 1896

A NILE WOMAN

Oil on canvas

56 by 30.5cm., 22 by 12in.

Private collection

Sold for  £ 11,353 in Jun 2002

Leighton went to Egypt in 1868, the year before the opening of the Suez canal. He travelled as far south as Aswan and painted over forty landscapes. The viceroy Ismail Pasha placed a steamer at Leighton's disposal, probably on the recommendation of Edward, Prince of Wales who was given the present picture - perhaps in thanks for his introduction.

Leighton cleverly captured the heat of the last light of the day as the solitary Egyptian woman makes her way home through the sand. The careful rendering of her robes is typical of Leighton and the pose of a woman carrying a water-jar appears in several important later works by the artist, including Captive Andromache of 1886 (See below). More on this painting

Leighton was the bearer of the shortest-lived peerage in history; after only one day his hereditary peerage became extinct upon his death

Frederic, Lord Leighton 1830 - 1896

Cimabue's Celebrated Madonna is carried in Procession through the Streets of Florence, c. 1853-5

Oil on canvas

222 x 521 cm

Royal Collection

The picture shows a scene from the 16th century art historian Giorgio Vasari's description of the 13th century procession of an altarpiece of the Madonna and Child through the streets of Florence. The Madonna is being carried from the studio of the Florentine artist Cimabue to the church of Santa Maria Novella. Cimabue himself is depicted immediately in front of the Madonna wearing a laurel wreath upon his head. He is followed by a group including several leading Florentine artistic figures of the day, including his pupil Giotto, the poet Dante Alighieri (leaning on the wall at right), the architect Arnolfo di Cambio, the painters Gaddo Gaddi, Andrea Tafi, Buonamico Buffalmacco and Simone Memmi; the sculptor Nicola Pisano, and on horseback at the right edge of the image, the King of Naples, Charles of Anjou. More on this painting

The Madonna depicted, seen at a very narrow angle in the centre of the painting, is actually not by Cimabue, but instead it is the Rucellai Madonna by Sienese artist Duccio di Buoninsegna. 

This was Leighton's first major work, painted in Rome. It was shown at the Academy in 1855. It was an immediate success, and Queen Victoria bought it for 600 guineas on opening day. More on this painting

Lord Leighton PRA (1830 - 1896)

St Jerome, c. 1869

Oil on canvas

1845 mm x 1420 mm x 40 mm

Royal Academy of Arts

Jerome (Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus, c.  347 – 30 September 420) was a priest, confessor, theologian and historian. He was the son of Eusebius, born at Stridon, a village near Emona on the border of Dalmatia and Pannonia, then part of northeastern Italy. He is best known for his translation of most of the Bible into Latin (the translation that became known as the Vulgate), and his commentaries on the Gospels. His list of writings is extensive.

The protégé of Pope Damasus I, who died in December of 384, Jerome was known for his teachings on Christian moral life, especially to those living in cosmopolitan centers such as Rome. In many cases, he focused his attention to the lives of women and identified how a woman devoted to Jesus should live her life. This focus stemmed from his close patron relationships with several prominent female ascetics who were members of affluent senatorial families.

He is recognised as a Saint and Doctor of the Church by the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Lutheran Church, and the Anglican Communion. His feast day is 30 September. More on Jerome

Frederic Leighton had two sisters including Alexandra who was Robert Browning's biographer. He was educated at University College School, London. He then received his artistic training on the European continent. At age 17, in the summer of 1847, he met the philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer in Frankfurt and drew his portrait, in graphite and gouache on paper — the only known full-length study of Schopenhauer done from life. When he was 24 he was in Florence; he studied at the Accademia di Belle Arti, and painted the procession of the Cimabue Madonna through the Borgo Allegri. From 1855 to 1859 he lived in Paris, where he met Ingres, Delacroix, Corot and Millet.

Frederic, Lord Leighton 1830–1896

An Athlete Wrestling with a Python, c. 1877

Bronze

1746 × 984 × 1099 mm, 290 kg

Tate

The idea of a heroic male nude struggling with a python came to Leighton as he was working on his huge canvas of the 'Daphnephoria' (now in the Lady Lever Art Gallery, Port Sunlight, UK). He was making clay models of some of his figures in the painting to help work out the composition, so he modelled this figure in clay as well. The figure was studied from life.

Leighton looked to antiquity for inspiration, to the perfectly poised and proportioned male nude of Greek sculpture, and invested it with a new vitality achieved through close attention not only to the skeletal and muscular structure of the body, but even to such details as veins. More on this sculpture

This is the earlier of Frederic Leighton’s only two life-size sculptures. In subject and scale it was intended as a challenge to one of the greatest classical sculptures, The Laocoön, which shows three men being crushed by sea serpents.  More on this sculpture

In 1860, he moved to London, where he associated with the Pre-Raphaelites. He designed Elizabeth Barrett Browning's tomb for Robert Browning in the English Cemetery, Florence in 1861. In 1864 he became an associate of the Royal Academy and in 1878 he became its President (1878–96). His 1877 sculpture, Athlete Wrestling with a Python (See above), was considered at its time to inaugurate a renaissance in contemporary British sculpture, referred to as the New Sculpture. American art critic Earl Shinn claimed at the time that "Except Leighton, there is scarce any one capable of putting up a correct frescoed figure in the archway of the Kensington Museum." His paintings represented Britain at the great 1900 Paris Exhibition.

Frederic, Lord Leighton, P.R.A.

Venus and Cupid

Oil on canvas

Private Collection

Sold for 375,000 USD in Nov 2017

Cupid is the god of desire, erotic love, attraction and affection. He is often portrayed as the son of the love goddess Venus and the war god Mars, and is known in Latin also as Amor (. His Greek counterpart is Eros. More on Venus and Cupid

Venus and Cupid represents Leighton’s first foray in painting the nude. Works such as The Bath of Psyche (See below) demonstrate Leighton’s continued exploration of the subject, and his influence on its a resurgence in British. More on this painting

Frederic Leighton (1830–1896)

The Fisherman and the Syren, 1856–1858

Oil on canvas

H 66.4 x W 48.9 cm

Bristol Museum & Art Gallery

This early work both illustrated and was inspired by a poem by Goethe, which tells the story of a mermaid who rises from the waters to complain to a fisherman that he is enticing her children to death. Gradually the mermaid's own beauty lures the fisherman into the water and to oblivion. A contemporary critic noted the 'irresistible seductiveness' of the mermaid but he observed also that this 'young artist has plainly drunk long and eagerly at the fount of beauty that assuaged the thirst of Leonardo, Michelangelo and Raphael'. It was in exactly that spirit that Leighton was to be so much admired. More on this painting

Frederic, Lord Leighton, P.R.A.

Venus Disrobing for the Bath, c. 1867

Oil on canvas

Private collection

Sold for 1,874,500 USD in Oct 2009

From the late 1860s onward, nudes were an important part of Leighton's oeuvre, with Venus Disrobing a portender of the art world's appreciation of the body alone as a beautiful object. More on this painting

Frederic Leighton

Actaea, the Nymph of the Shore, c. 1868

Oil on canvas

57.2 x 102.2 cm

National Gallery of Canada 

In Greek mythology, Actaea was one of the Nereids or sea nymphs, the fifty daughters of the sea god Nereus, who lived in the Aegean. She is portrayed watching her dolphin companions from the shore. Such classical references allowed the Victorians to accept this erotic image. The distant coastline is one that the artist recorded while visiting Rhodes in 1867. More on this painting

Frederic Leighton

Icarus and Daedalus, c.1869

Oil on canvas

138.2 x 106.5 cm

The Faringdon Collection

In Greek mythology, Icarus was the son of the master craftsman Daedalus, the creator of the Labyrinth. Icarus and Daedalus attempt to escape from Crete by means of wings that Daedalus constructed from feathers and wax. Daedalus warns Icarus first of complacency and then of hubris, instructing him to fly neither too low nor too high, lest the sea's dampness clog his wings or the sun's heat melt them. Icarus ignores Daedalus’s instructions not to fly too close to the sun, causing the wax in his wings to melt. He tumbles out of the sky, falls into the sea, and drowns. More on Icarus and Daedalus

Frederic Leighton

Hercules Wrestling with Death for the Body of Alcestis

Oil on canvas

Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art

The artworks Hercules wrestling with death over the body of Alcestis portrayed a story about the Hercules and the wife of Admetus who was ready to sacrifice her life for the sake of her husband. Admetus' wife knew that her husband really had angered Artemis but she was willing to sacrifice in order for her husband the king to live. The moment Admetus' wife died, Hercules arrived as a guest in the palace and he didn’t wait but goes on and wrestle with the death over the body of Admetus' wife and shockingly, Hercules was able to win her back. More on this painting

Frederic Leighton, 1st Baron Leighton  (1830–1896)

Nausicaa, circa 1879

Oil on canvas

Height: 57 in (144.7 cm); Width: 26.3 in (66.9 cm)

Private collection

Nausicaa was a female character in Greek mythology, who appeared in the Homeric epic Odyssey. She was the daughter of King Alcinous and Queen Arete of Phaeacia. In the Odyssey, the ship of Odysseus was destroyed and washed ashore on the island of Phaeacia. On the shore, Nausicaa and her handmaidens washed their clothes, and the shipwrecked hero was awoken by their laughter and games. He appeared in front of them without wearing any clothes, and asked for help; the handmaidens ran off scared, but Nausicaa offered him some clothes and brought him to the edge of the town. There, she told him that she would go first, so people wouldn't see her walking with a stranger, and that he should then go straight to her father's palace, and speak to her mother first. Odysseus indeed went and spoke to Arete, won her trust, and was accepted as a guest at Alcinous' home. He recounted his numerous adventures and after a few days, Alcinous offered him the necessary ships in order to reach his final destination, More on Nausicaa

Frederic Leighton (1830–1896)

Captive Andromache, c.1888

Oil on canvas

H 197 x W 407 cm

Manchester Art Gallery

Girls and women dressed in flowing drapery process from the left along a raised stone walkway on their way to collect water from a high rectangular well on the right. In the centre stands Andromache, a woman draped in black, her face, neck and foot just visible. She looks pensively towards a family group at the bottom right, where a baby sits on its mothers knee and touches its fathers face. To the front left are two men in deep maroon robes holding wooden staffs, one of whom wears a red cap and gestures with his thumb towards Andromache. A partially draped man in the foreground with his back to the viewer also carries a staff and looks towards her. In the bottom left corner sits an old woman who is spinning. She too gazes at Andromache. A mountainous landscape framed by trees is visible behind Andromache. More on this painting

In Greek mythology, Andromache was the wife of Hector, daughter of Eetion, and sister to Podes. The name means 'man battler' or 'fighter of men.

During the Trojan War, after Hector was killed by Achilles and the city taken by the Greeks, the Greek herald Talthybius informed her of the plan to kill Astyanax, her son by Hector, by throwing him from the city walls. This act was carried out by Neoptolemus who then took Andromache as a concubine and Hector's brother, Helenus, as a slave. When Neoptolemus died, Andromache married Helenus and became Queen of Epirus. In Epirus Andromache faithfully continued to make offerings at Hector’s cenotaph. Andromache eventually went to live with her youngest son, Pergamus in Pergamum, where she died of old age. Andromache was famous for her fidelity and virtue; her character represents the suffering of Trojan women during war. More on Andromache

Frederic, Lord Leighton

The Bath of Psyche, exhibited 1890

Oil paint on canvas

1892 × 622 mm

Tate

Psyche's beauty was so great that no man dared to approach her as a suitor. An oracle told her parents to dress her for marriage and sacrifice her, but she was transported instead to the golden palace of Cupid, the god of love. She lived there in a blissful state, waited on by slaves, and each night Cupid would make love to her, but without his identity being revealed. He later abandoned Psyche when, encouraged by her jealous sisters, she gazed on his sleeping form by the light of a lamp and inadvertently dropped hot oil on his body.

The painting shows Psyche undressing herself in order to bathe before Cupid's arrival. She is completely self-absorbed, and her narcissism is emphasised by her reflection, captured in the smooth surface of the water. The woman's pose, with arms raised to reveal her naked body, derives more specifically from the Callipygian Venus, a famous Greek statue that Leighton would have seen in the Capodimonte Museum in Naples. More on this painting

Frederic, Lord Leighton

Perseus and Andromeda

Oil on canvas

 235 x 129.2 x 12 cm

National Museums Liverpool

Perseus and his mission to kill the Medusa was one of the most renowned ancient legends in the Victorian era. Perseus, the son of Danaë and Zeus, was ordered to fetch the head of the Gorgon Medusa, whose magical power caused all who saw it to be turned to stone. 

Perseus is shown riding here on a winged horse, carrying the Medusa’s head. He has come to the rescue of Andromeda, who is chained to a rock as sacrifice to Poseidon, God of the Sea. Leighton has infused drama in the scene. Perseus’s arrow has just struck the dragon whose body continues to ensnare Andromeda. More on this painting

Leighton was knighted at Windsor in 1878, and was created a baronet, of Holland Park Road in the Parish of St Mary Abbots, Kensington, in the County of Middlesex, eight years later. He was the first painter to be given a peerage, in the 1896 New Year Honours. The patent creating him Baron Leighton, of Stretton in the County of Shropshire, was issued on 24 January 1896; Leighton died the next day of angina pectoris.

Frederic Leighton, 1st Baron Leighton  (1830–1896)

The feigned death of Juliet, c. from 1856 until 58

Oil on canvas

Height: 113.60 mm (4.47 in); Width: 175.20 mm (6.89 in)

Art Gallery of South Australia

The scene opens early on Wednesday morning. The Nurse enters Juliet's room and discovers her seemingly lifeless body on the bed. The Nurse tries to wake her, but believing her to be dead, cries out to the family in desperation. The Capulets, Friar Laurence, and Paris enter the room in response to the Nurse's cries. They dramatically mourn Juliet's loss while the Friar maintains his deception by offering words of support about Divine Will, comforting the family by expressing the belief that Juliet is in heaven. He then arranges for Juliet's body to be taken to the family vault. Capulet orders that the wedding preparations be changed to funeral preparations. More on The feigned death of Juliet

Frederic Leighton, 1st Baron Leighton  (1830–1896)

Greek Girls Picking up Pebbles by the Sea, c. 1871

Oil on canvas

84 x 130 cm

The Pérez Simón Collection, Mexico

On his death his barony was extinguished after existing for only a day; this is a record in the Peerage. His house in Holland Park, London has been turned into a museum, the Leighton House Museum. A blue plaque commemorates Leighton at Leighton House Museum. More on Frederic Leighton

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25 Works, Today, May 28th. is Hans Makart's day, his story, illustrated with footnotes #146

Hans Makart

A feast in the park

Oil on canvas

28 x 41 cm 

Private collection

Estimated for  €12,000 EUR - €15,000 EUR in June 2022

Hans Makart (28 May 1840 – 3 October 1884) was a 19th-century Austrian academic history painter, designer, and decorator. He is best known for his influence on Gustav Klimt and other Austrian artists, but in his own era he was considered an important artist himself and a celebrity figure in the high culture of Vienna and attended with almost cult-like adulation.

Hans Makart  (1840–1884) 

A Vienna style porcelain plaque, 'Funf Sinnen' (The Five Senses)

Vienna, late 19th/early 20th century

Each titled to the reverse, Der Geruch, Das Face, Der Geschmach, Das Gehre and Dasfühl

The smell, the face, the taste, the hearing and the feeling

each 39.5cm. x 9cm., 15½in. x 3½in.

Private collection

In the Five Senses Makart depicts five female nudes, on five separate canvases, each placed in a forest setting. The women are "rotated" towards a different viewpoint and are engaged respectively (reading from left-to-right) in the activities of touching, hearing, seeing, smelling, and tasting. The prevailing theme is unambiguous however: female eroticism. More on this painting

Makart first studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna in 1858. However, after being classified as untalented, he was forced to leave his first place of studies. Makart moved to Munich and started studying at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts under history painter Karl Theodor von Piloty, whose dramatically staged historical paintings were echoed in the later works of the student.

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

SUSANNA AND THE ELDERS, c. 1860/62

. Oil on canvas

161 x 79 cm. 

Private Collection

The naked Susanna, lying on a rocky fountain, fell asleep during bathing. Innocently dreaming under a tree, she barely reveals her bodily stimuli - only lightly covered with a white cloth. At her feet different birds and a water drinking peacock (symbol of beauty and immortality), in the background by her head the source of the stream. Behind a rocky protrusion, the two lusty old men are lurking.

The picture was painted around 1860/62 and was certainly inspired by the painting by A. v. Dyck in the Old Pinakothek in Munich "Susanna and the two old ones." More on this painting

A fair Hebrew wife named Susanna was falsely accused by lecherous voyeurs. As she bathes in her garden, having sent her attendants away, two lustful elders secretly observe the lovely Susanna. When she makes her way back to her house, they accost her, threatening to claim that she was meeting a young man in the garden unless she agrees to have sex with them.

She refuses to be blackmailed and is arrested and about to be put to death for promiscuity when a young man named Daniel interrupts the proceedings, shouting that the elders should be questioned to prevent the death of an innocent. After being separated, the two men are questioned about details of what they saw, but disagree about the tree under which Susanna supposedly met her lover. In the Greek text, the names of the trees cited by the elders form puns with the sentence given by Daniel. The first says they were under a mastic, and Daniel says that an angel stands ready to cuthim in two. The second says they were under an evergreen oak tree, and Daniel says that an angel stands ready to saw him in two. The great difference in size between a mastic and an oak makes the elders' lie plain to all the observers. The false accusers are put to death, and virtue triumphs. More about Susanna

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

Leda and the Swan

Oil on canvas

40½ x 53 in. (103 x 135 cm.) 

Private collection

Leda, in Greek legend, usually believed to be the daughter of Thestius, king of Aetolia, and wife of Tyndareus, king of Lacedaemon. She was also believed to have been the mother (by Zeus, who had approached and seduced her in the form of a swan) of the other twin, Pollux, and of Helen, both of whom hatched from eggs. Variant legends gave divine parentage to both the twins and possibly also to Clytemnestra, with all three of them having hatched from the eggs of Leda, while yet other legends say that Leda bore the twins to her mortal husband, Tyndareus. Still other variants say that Leda may have hatched out Helen from an egg laid by the goddess Nemesis, who was similarly approached by Zeus in the form of a swan.The divine swan’s encounter with Leda was a subject depicted by both ancient Greek and Italian Renaissance artists; Leonardo da Vinci undertook a painting (now lost) of the theme, and Correggio’s Leda (c. 1530s) is a well-known treatment of the subject. More Leda and The Swan

Hans Makart (Austrian, Salzburg 1840–1884 Vienna)

The Dream after the Ball

Oil on canvas

62 3/8 x 37 1/4 in. (158.4 x 94.6 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

The first picture he painted under Piloty, Lavoisier in Prison, though it was considered timid and conventional, attracted attention by its sense of color. In his next work, The Knight and the Water Nymphs, he first displayed the decorative qualities to which he afterwards sacrificed everything else in his work. 

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

Bacchus and Ariadne/ The triumph of Ariadne, c. from 1873 until 1874

Oil on canvas

476 x 784 cm

Belvedere,  Vienna

Abandoned by her lover Theseus on the island of Naxos, Ariadne was discovered by Bacchus and his followers, who received her into the chariot of the god. Although not part of the narrative, the so-called Triumph of either Bacchus alone or Bacchus and Ariadne in a chariot, accompanied by a procession of nymphs, satyrs, centaurs, putti and all sorts of animals, was a popular decorative subject, often found on Roman sarcophagi. More on the triumph of Ariadne

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

Marmorherzen/ Marble hearts

Oil on canvas

Private collection

His fame became established in the next year, with two works, Modern Amoretti (See below) and The Plague in Florence (See below). His painting Romeo and Juliet (See below) was soon after bought by the Austrian emperor for the Vienna Museum, and Makart was invited to come to Vienna by the aristocracy.

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

Moderne Amoretten , c. 1868

Oil on canvas

Height: 80 cm (31.4 in); Width: 149 cm (58.6 in)

Belvedere,  Vienna

The three canvasses that make up this work are here arranged as Makart himself stipulated. All three depict a woodland scene, populated by pale-skinned women. Clutching one another, they are clad in loose, flowing drapery which appears to evoke a scandalously revealing version of contemporary fashions. In the central canvas, a woman crowned with flowers and two others are borne up by four young children, two cupids and two fauns.. More on this painting

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

Modern Amoretti, right panel of three main panels

Oil on canvas

Belvedere,  Vienna

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

Modern Cupids: Little princess as May Queen carried by boys in triumph

Oil on canvas

100 x 58 cm 

Belvedere,  Vienna

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

Modern Amoretti, left panel of three main panels

Oil on canvas

Belvedere,  Vienna

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

First part of triptych, The Plague in Florence, c. 1868

Oil on canvas

103x204.5cm

Museum Georg Schäfer, Schweinfurt

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

Second part of triptych, The Plague in Florence, c. 1868

Oil on canvas

103x204.5cm

Museum Georg Schäfer, Schweinfurt

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

Third part of triptych, The Plague in Florence, c. 1868

Oil on canvas

103x204.5cm

Museum Georg Schäfer, Schweinfurt

In March 1348 the plague reached Florence, where it lasted until July. Neither formally educated medical doctors nor the traditional male and female folk healers and medical practitioners could do anything about it. The infected died within three days, people were infected by the smallest contact even with the clothes or other objects handled by the ill. dead bodies were being thrown out upon the streets, after which the animals who started to touch it fell down dead. Priests and other authorities died so swiftly that the administration and law and order collapsed. People refused to bury their dead, who were instead buried by a special group of grave diggers recruited from the poorest beggars, in mass graves. Those who could not pay left the bodies on the street, which were soon full of rotting corpses.

100.000 people died in Florence. This is not possible because the whole city population did not reach that number, but the death toll was nonetheless very high. One of the most known victims was the painter Bernardo Daddi. More on the Plague in Florence

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

Balcony scene, Romeo and Juliet, circa 1920

Oil on canvas

I have no further description, at this time

Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about two young Italian star-crossed lovers whose deaths ultimately reconcile their feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetime and, along with Hamlet, is one of his most frequently performed plays. Today, the title characters are regarded as archetypal young lovers. More on Romeo and Juliet

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

Romeo and Juliet

Oil on Canvas

37 x 42.5 cm. (14.6 x 16.7 in.)

Private collection

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

Romeo and Juliet , c. 1863–1864

Oil on Canvas

111 x 132 cm. (43.7 x 52 in.)

Private collection

He undertook study trips to England, France and Italy until he finally returned to Vienna. Makart's work, like those of other academic artists of the time, consisted of allegorical painting and history painting as seen in Catherina Carnaro (See below), Dianas Hunt (See below), The Entry of Charles V into Antwerp, Abundantia (See below), Spring (See below), Summer (See below), The Death of Cleopatra (See below), The Five Senses (See above), and Bacchus and Ariadne (See above). 

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

Venice pays homage to Caterina Cornaro, c. between 1872 and 1873

Oil on canvas

Height: 400 cm (13.1 ft); Width: 1,060 cm (11.5 yd)

Belvedere, Vienna

Catherine Cornaro was the last monarch of the Kingdom of Cyprus. She was queen consort of Cyprus by marriage to James II of Cyprus, regent of Cyprus during the minority of her son James III of Cyprus in 1473–1474, and finally queen regnant of Cyprus. She reigned from 26 August 1474 to 26 February 1489 and was declared a "Daughter of Saint Mark" in order that the Republic of Venice could claim control of Cyprus after the death of her husband, James II. More on Catherine Cornaro

In this vast tableau a large crowd gathers to pay tribute to a seated and richly-robed Queen who sits towards the right of the picture frame. Clothed in the richly-colored style that recalled the Venetian Renaissance, the crowd carry pots, musical instruments and even weapons. Fabrics drape the backdrop on the right-hand side, but to the left, blue sky, classical architecture and the sails of ships can be seen.

Makart's first history painting, Venice pays tribute to Caterina Cornaro was an unprecedented success; people flocked in their thousands to see it in Vienna before it toured throughout Europe. More on this painting

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

Painted by H. Reldas, signed after Hans Makart

The Hunt of Diana, with Actaeon as a stag pursued by the goddess and her hounds

height 10 1/8 in.; width 15 5/8 in., 25.7 cm; 39.7 cm

John Ringling BequestEuropean and American Art

Actaeon accidentally saw Artemis naked, while she was bathing in the woods; amazed at her beauty, he was spotted by the goddess, who told him not to speak again or he would change into a deer. Upon hearing his hunting dogs, however, Actaeon called them and immediately transformed into a deer. So, he started running into the woods, but his well-trained dogs found him and tore him to pieces. The myth of Actaeon was considered to represent human sacrifice in an effort to appease a deity. More on the Hunt of Diana, with Actaeon

After Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

The Hunt of Diana, ca. 1875–1899

Porcelain plaque

37.8 x 24 cm. (14.9 x 9.4 in.)

Private collection

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

The Entrance of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, into Antwerp in 1520, c. 1878

Oil on canvas

Height: 520 cm (17 ft); Width: 952 cm (10.4 yd)

Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna

Charles V was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain (Castile and Aragon) from 1516 to 1556, and Lord of the Netherlands as titular Duke of Burgundy from 1506 to 1555. As he was head of the rising House of Habsburg during the first half of the 16th century, his dominions in Europe included the Holy Roman Empire, extending from Germany to northern Italy with direct rule over the Austrian hereditary lands and the Burgundian Low Countries, and a unified Spain with its southern Italian kingdoms of Naples, Sicily, and Sardinia. Furthermore, his reign encompassed both the long-lasting Spanish and the short-lived German colonizations of the Americas. The personal union of the European and American territories of Charles V was the first collection of realms labelled "the empire on which the Sun never sets".  More on Charles V

Set in 1520, this work shows the youthful king riding a black horse into the centre of Antwerp, flanked by ornately-dressed subjects and several semi-naked women. They proceed along a street strewn with flowers, with the tops of houses visible above them.

The Entrance of Emperor Charles V into Antwerp was the source of considerable controversy at the time of its first exhibition due to Makart's inclusion of the naked female figures. This was dismissed as both historically inaccurate and somewhat indecorous for a scene which was central to Austria's sense of national identity. More on this painting

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

Spring, c. 1884

3,70 x 6,30 m

Salzburg Museum

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

The Summer, c. 1880

Oil on canvas

Alte Nationalgalerie

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

The Death of Cleopatra

Oil on canvas

191 cm x 255 cm

State Museum, Germany

In this painting Cleopatra, the legendary queen of Egypt, is shown at the moment just before her suicide. She reclines on a bed of fabrics, semi-nude and wearing jewelry and her crown. To her left, one of her servants weeps, whilst just below the queen another has already passed. A brazier burns on the left-hand side.

Theatrical melodrama pervades Makart's depiction of this famous subject matter; his use of chiaroscuro picks out the stark whiteness of Cleopatra's body, as if she were spot-lit on a stage. In fact, many details seem to have been drawn from Shakespeare's account, such as the presence of the servants, and the detail of the queen's royal attire. The spot-lighting then leaves the other areas of the painting, in which can be found mourning and death, murky and foreboding. In the bottom-left of the frame, meanwhile, the flowers and animal skins seem almost to be rendered in grisaille (flat shades of grey). These great contrasts in lighting culminate in the brazier, whose silhouette is topped by a bright white flame. As a whole, the painting evokes the sense of the queen's preeminence and the moment of her death; a tragic elevation before her fall which seems to engender her far-off, almost longing facial expression. More on this painting

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

The Death of Cleopatra, c.  1875

Oil on panel

Height: 122.5 cm (48.2 in); Width: 83 cm (32.6 in)

Private collection

Initially, the reputable artist received state funding for his specially designed atelier. In 1876, Makart became the Director of the special School of Historical Painting at the Academy, which had once rejected him on the basis of supposed lack of talent.

Makarts paintings were influenced by his role models Titian and Rubens. His pictures are characterized by intense sensuality, baroque pathos and opulent colourfulness. In addition to working as a painter, Makart also worked as an interior decorator, especially for his patron Nikolaus Dumba. On his behalf he took over the design of the staircase of the Art History Museum in Vienna.

Hans Makart, 1840 Salzburg - 1884 Vienna

A Nubian, 1875/1876

Oil on canvas

height 272 cm, width 155 cm

LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections

In 1875/76 Hans Makart travelled to Egypt accompanied by a number of fellow-artists. They took up residence in an abandoned palace called Musaffir Chan which the viceroy Ismail Pascha had placed at their disposal. At that period, journeys to the land of the Nile were almost de rigueur, quenching the artists' longing for new and exotic subjects as well as satisfying the demands of their customers for unusual depictions of the oriental lifestyle and foreign luxury goods.

In this painting Makart has created a balance between the figure of the Nubian, which is rendered slightly from below, and the surrounding architecture. Clad in light-coloured robes and a red turban, the dark-skinned man stands out against a gloomy corner of a wall belonging to some unidentifiable architectural structure. On his left he wears a richly bejewelled sword. In one hand he clasps a string of beads while the other is draped on his thigh. More on this painting

Even if the "prince of painters" Makart was ridiculed by many after his death because of his extravagant style, he exerted a considerable influence on younger painter such as Gustav Klimt. In addition, his elaborately furnished studio, a work of art in its own right, evoked great admiration in the visitors. To this day, the so-called "Makartstyle" describes the influential style of interior decoration, characterized by the use of plush, elaborate wall hangings, dark paneling and gorgeous chandeliers. Makarts works are now found in numerous international collections, e.g. the Neue Pinakothek in Munich, the Museum of Fine Arts in Budapest and the Kunsthalle in Hamburg. More on Hans Makart

Please visit my other blogs: Art Collector, Mythology, Marine Art, Portrait of a Lady, The Orientalist, Art of the Nude and The Canals of Venice, Middle East Artists, 365 Saints, 365 Days, and Biblical Icons, also visit my Boards on Pinterest and my art stores at  deviantart and Aaroko

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