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Deianeira’s abduction, the revenge of Nessus, and the point of view
Classical myths are full of stories of abduction and rape, but that of Nessus, Deianeira and Heracles is different. Not only was rape prevented, but it ends in post-mortem revenge. The story of Nessus...
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Arthur: 14 Deaths of Guenevere and Lancelot
Threading their way through many swashbuckling tales of chivalry, Sir Thomas Malory tells four threads, of the life of King Arthur, his love triangle with Queen Guenevere and the faithful adulterer Sir...
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Reading visual art: 95 Ghosts A
Ghosts, the visible semblances of dead people, are surprisingly mostly literary devices, and are very unusual in paintings that aren’t retelling a written original. This is in spite of their being...
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Reading visual art: 96 Ghosts B
After Shakespeare had made plentiful use of ghosts as a literary device, other authors followed, among them the probably forged tales of Ossian, in the eighteenth century. Nicolai Abildgaard...
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Paintings of 1923: 1 Narrative
At the end of each year, I post articles showing a selection of paintings that are believed to have been made one century ago. This gives a fascinating overview of the wide range of styles during some...
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Heretic or heroine of France? Joan of Arc, the call
Ever since Joan of Arc was burnt at the stake in 1431, she has been a semi-legendary figure symbolising the fight for independence of the French people and nation. Since 1920, there has been a French...
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Heretic or heroine of France? Joan of Arc, the martyr
In the previous article, I briefly summarised the life of Joan of Arc, and looked at paintings showing her visions. Those resulted in her being called to help the Dauphin of France, its future King...
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Arthur: Summary and Contents
Legends about King Arthur and his knights have a long history across many European cultures. Although there are various accounts of these, the most influential in the last six hundred years is that...
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Reading visual art: 97 Fairies A
Fairies might seem modern, but their origins go right back to the mythology of Persia, although they skipped the classical civilisations of the Mediterranean, appearing again in Celtic and Germanic...
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Reading visual art: 98 Fairies B
By the middle of the nineteenth century faery painting, inspired mainly by Shakespeare’s play A Midsummer Night’s Dream, had become established as a flourishing sub-genre, and had even spread over the...
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Reading visual art: 99 Feasts sacred
One of the best locations for a painting, whether in a house of religion, mansion or palace, is in the eating hall. During the sixteenth century in particular paintings were used to brighten up the...
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Reading visual art: 100 Feasts secular
Although no painting of a secular feast can compete in fame with those of the Last Supper, several drawn from classical myth have become well known. Of these, the wedding feast of Peleus and Thetis has...
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Reading visual art: 101 Fishing A
At one time, fishing with a rod and line or angling was claimed to be the most popular participatory sport in Britain. In this and tomorrow’s articles about the reading of visual art, I show examples...
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Reading visual art: 102 Fishing B
In the first of these two articles, I showed narrative paintings of angling, fishing with rod and line. I conclude here with examples of landscapes and other non-narrative works incorporating anglers...
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Changing Paintings: an introduction to a new series on Ovid’s Metamorphoses
If you had walked into the workshop or studio of almost any European painter between 1500 and 1850, there’s one book you’d most likely find there: a well-worn copy of Ovid’s Metamorphoses. Of all the...
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Changing Paintings: 1 Creation and Lycaon’s cannibalism
Ovid opens the first book of his Metamorphoses by stating his aim, to tell us tales of bodies changed into new forms, the meaning of the title. He then starts at the literal beginning, with his short...
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Reading visual art: 103 Sport old and mythical
Many civilisations have held competitive sports in high esteem, and it’s only to be expected that they feature in myths, literature and the paintings derived from them. In today’s article I show...
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Reading visual art: 104 Sport genteel and modern
Some modern sports owe their origins to the games of childhood catalogued by Pieter Brueghel the Elder in his painting shown in the previous article. Among those were games played using racquets such...
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Changing Paintings: 2 The flood and the Python
After Jupiter has finished telling the council of gods how Lycaon had failed to provide him hospitality, and had tried to feed him from the body of a hostage he had killed, the leader of the gods...
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Reading visual art: 105 Telescope and microscope
Optical instruments including telescopes and microscopes have surprisingly long histories. Although they don’t appear in many paintings, where they do they’re usually worth examining carefully. Simple...
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