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The Barque of Dante
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The Barque of Dante
The Barque of Dante (French: La Barque de Dante), also Dante and Virgil in Hell (Dante et Virgile aux enfers), is an 1822 oil painting by the French artist Eugène Delacroix, now in the Louvre. The painting is based on Canto VIII of Dante Alighieri's poem Inferno, depicting Dante and his companion Virgil crossing the river Styx on Phlegyas's boat, which damned people cling to.
The Barque of Dante was painted by Delacroix for his first entry to the Paris Salon, what was at the time the worlds most prominent regular art exhibition. Delacroix, after considering another subject, settled on a passage from Inferno that was lesser-known in France. He had long been interested in the works of Dante, and previously created an illustration depicting the same scene that would be used in The Barque of Dante. Delacroix worked on the painting intensively for two and a half months, finishing it a few days before the Salon. It received a mixed reception at the Salon, while many praised the painting for its similarities to artists such as Peter Paul Rubens, others critiqued its loose composition. Despite these criticisms, the The Barque of Dante was purchased from the Salon by the French state for 2,000 francs and placed in the Musée du Luxembourg, guaranteeing its eventual transfer to the Louvre after Delacroix's death.
All of the poses in the painting were likely performed by Martin François Suisse, and were largely inspired by the works of Michelangelo, Rubens, and various other artists. Delacroix scholars have debated the sources and originality of the colors in the painting, with significant comparison having been drawn to Théodore Géricault's The Raft of the Medusa. The way Delacroix depicted water droplets using unmixed, vibrant colors was a significant innovation, and an early example of Delacroix's interest in a "rational" analysis of color.
The Barque of Dante is an 1822 oil painting by the French artist Eugène Delacroix. It was the first painting that Delacroix submitted to the Paris Salon, at the time the world's foremost regular art exhibition. Delacroix had been suffering from financial issues. While he earned art from designing machines, drawing political cartoons, and fine art commissions such as Virgin of the Sacred Heart, they were not enough to cover the cost of attending the École des Beaux-Arts, or studying under his master Pierre-Narcisse Guérin. A purchase of his art by the state at the Salon would improve his financial situation. He had shown interest in the Salon of 1822 as early as July 26, 1821, when he wrote to his sister stating his intention to submit a painting depicting the ongoing Greek War of Independence, mentioning this subject again in a letter on September 15 to his friend. This would have been a provocative subject, as while the liberal faction supported the Greeks, the French government was nervous about the conflict. Even if it was purchased, political changes may have kept it from public display. Delacroix eventually abandoned the idea of portraying the conflict.
Delacroix had long had interest in the works of the Italian poet Dante. He copied lines from Inferno in his school notebooks, had translating lines from the poem since 1819, and drawing several sketches of scenes from the poem's cantos. In 1820, while staying with his sister in the Boixe Forest, he experienced a feverish episode, during which he drew an illustration of Dante. Delacroix scholar Lee Johnson believes this to be a complex washed illustration currently held in the National Gallery of Canada.
By January 16, 1822, he had begun work on The Barque of Dante, referencing his earlier drawing in a letter to his sister. The chosen scene was from Canto VIII of Inferno, in which Dante and his companion Virgil cross the River Styx on Phlegyas's boat, before a damned man clings onto the boat and interrogates Dante. Virgil pushes the man back into the river, at which other damned emerge and assault the boat. Dante hears screams of anguish, first from the damned, identifying the man as Filippo Argenti, and then from the burning City of Dis causing Dante to lean forwards in awe. The latter screams prompt Dante to first spot the approaching city. This passage was not well known in France, where artists were more familiar with elements such as Paolo and Francesca or Ugolino's story. For the next two and a half months he intensively worked on the painting, eventually finishing it by April 15. Before submitting it to the Salon, he showed it to Guérin, who criticized the painting and did not believe it should be exhibited.
The Salon opened on April 24, and professors from the École des Beaux-Arts soon took note of The Barque of Dante, though their reactions were mixed. The artist Antoine-Jean Gros called it "du Rubens châtié" ('A chastised Rubens'), a positive comparison to the artist Peter Paul Rubens. Lee Johnson believes that many motifs from Rubens were placed in the painting, inspiring Gros' complement. Gros offered to mentor Delacroix for the Prix de Rome arts scholarship, though Delacroix rejected this offer in order to take an independent path.. The lawyer Adolphe Thiers, in an opinion believed to reflect that of the painter François Gérard, stated "Je ne sais quel souvenir des grands artistes me saisit a l'’aspect de ce tableau" ('A certain memory of the great masters stirs within me as I gaze at this painting'). Other artists were less favorable, with both Étienne-Jean Delécluze and Charles Paul Landon deriding it for its nontraditional, loose technique. Delécluze called it a tartouillade, a colloquial word for a painting that sacrificed its composition for bold colors.
On May 31, Director-General of Royal Museums comte Auguste de Forbin sent a letter to Delacroix inquiring if he may purchase the painting for the state, and at what price. Delacroix requested 2,400 francs, though he left the final price to Forbin, who paid 2,000 francs. It was purchased on July 16 and placed the Musée du Luxembourg, a museum for living artists, from which paintings would be transferred to the Louvre upon their artist's death. This early career success greatly encouraged Delacroix.
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The Barque of Dante
The Barque of Dante (French: La Barque de Dante), also Dante and Virgil in Hell (Dante et Virgile aux enfers), is an 1822 oil painting by the French artist Eugène Delacroix, now in the Louvre. The painting is based on Canto VIII of Dante Alighieri's poem Inferno, depicting Dante and his companion Virgil crossing the river Styx on Phlegyas's boat, which damned people cling to.
The Barque of Dante was painted by Delacroix for his first entry to the Paris Salon, what was at the time the worlds most prominent regular art exhibition. Delacroix, after considering another subject, settled on a passage from Inferno that was lesser-known in France. He had long been interested in the works of Dante, and previously created an illustration depicting the same scene that would be used in The Barque of Dante. Delacroix worked on the painting intensively for two and a half months, finishing it a few days before the Salon. It received a mixed reception at the Salon, while many praised the painting for its similarities to artists such as Peter Paul Rubens, others critiqued its loose composition. Despite these criticisms, the The Barque of Dante was purchased from the Salon by the French state for 2,000 francs and placed in the Musée du Luxembourg, guaranteeing its eventual transfer to the Louvre after Delacroix's death.
All of the poses in the painting were likely performed by Martin François Suisse, and were largely inspired by the works of Michelangelo, Rubens, and various other artists. Delacroix scholars have debated the sources and originality of the colors in the painting, with significant comparison having been drawn to Théodore Géricault's The Raft of the Medusa. The way Delacroix depicted water droplets using unmixed, vibrant colors was a significant innovation, and an early example of Delacroix's interest in a "rational" analysis of color.
The Barque of Dante is an 1822 oil painting by the French artist Eugène Delacroix. It was the first painting that Delacroix submitted to the Paris Salon, at the time the world's foremost regular art exhibition. Delacroix had been suffering from financial issues. While he earned art from designing machines, drawing political cartoons, and fine art commissions such as Virgin of the Sacred Heart, they were not enough to cover the cost of attending the École des Beaux-Arts, or studying under his master Pierre-Narcisse Guérin. A purchase of his art by the state at the Salon would improve his financial situation. He had shown interest in the Salon of 1822 as early as July 26, 1821, when he wrote to his sister stating his intention to submit a painting depicting the ongoing Greek War of Independence, mentioning this subject again in a letter on September 15 to his friend. This would have been a provocative subject, as while the liberal faction supported the Greeks, the French government was nervous about the conflict. Even if it was purchased, political changes may have kept it from public display. Delacroix eventually abandoned the idea of portraying the conflict.
Delacroix had long had interest in the works of the Italian poet Dante. He copied lines from Inferno in his school notebooks, had translating lines from the poem since 1819, and drawing several sketches of scenes from the poem's cantos. In 1820, while staying with his sister in the Boixe Forest, he experienced a feverish episode, during which he drew an illustration of Dante. Delacroix scholar Lee Johnson believes this to be a complex washed illustration currently held in the National Gallery of Canada.
By January 16, 1822, he had begun work on The Barque of Dante, referencing his earlier drawing in a letter to his sister. The chosen scene was from Canto VIII of Inferno, in which Dante and his companion Virgil cross the River Styx on Phlegyas's boat, before a damned man clings onto the boat and interrogates Dante. Virgil pushes the man back into the river, at which other damned emerge and assault the boat. Dante hears screams of anguish, first from the damned, identifying the man as Filippo Argenti, and then from the burning City of Dis causing Dante to lean forwards in awe. The latter screams prompt Dante to first spot the approaching city. This passage was not well known in France, where artists were more familiar with elements such as Paolo and Francesca or Ugolino's story. For the next two and a half months he intensively worked on the painting, eventually finishing it by April 15. Before submitting it to the Salon, he showed it to Guérin, who criticized the painting and did not believe it should be exhibited.
The Salon opened on April 24, and professors from the École des Beaux-Arts soon took note of The Barque of Dante, though their reactions were mixed. The artist Antoine-Jean Gros called it "du Rubens châtié" ('A chastised Rubens'), a positive comparison to the artist Peter Paul Rubens. Lee Johnson believes that many motifs from Rubens were placed in the painting, inspiring Gros' complement. Gros offered to mentor Delacroix for the Prix de Rome arts scholarship, though Delacroix rejected this offer in order to take an independent path.. The lawyer Adolphe Thiers, in an opinion believed to reflect that of the painter François Gérard, stated "Je ne sais quel souvenir des grands artistes me saisit a l'’aspect de ce tableau" ('A certain memory of the great masters stirs within me as I gaze at this painting'). Other artists were less favorable, with both Étienne-Jean Delécluze and Charles Paul Landon deriding it for its nontraditional, loose technique. Delécluze called it a tartouillade, a colloquial word for a painting that sacrificed its composition for bold colors.
On May 31, Director-General of Royal Museums comte Auguste de Forbin sent a letter to Delacroix inquiring if he may purchase the painting for the state, and at what price. Delacroix requested 2,400 francs, though he left the final price to Forbin, who paid 2,000 francs. It was purchased on July 16 and placed the Musée du Luxembourg, a museum for living artists, from which paintings would be transferred to the Louvre upon their artist's death. This early career success greatly encouraged Delacroix.
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