The Sorrow of Telemachus
The Sorrow of Telemachus | |
---|---|
Artist | Angelica Kauffman |
Year | 1783 |
Medium | oil paint, canvas |
Dimensions | 83.2 cm (32.8 in) × 114.3 cm (45.0 in) |
Location | Metropolitan Museum of Art |
Accession No. | 25.110.187 |
Identifiers | The Met object ID: 436809 |
The Sorrow of Telemachus is an oil painting by the Swiss artist Angelica Kauffman, from 1783. It is in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, in New York.[1]
Early history and creation
[edit]This painting and Telemachus and the Nymphs of Calypso were painted for Monsignor Onorato Caetani (1742-1797) . They show scenes from the French novel The Adventures of Telemachus published by François Fénelon in 1699, and based on the story of Telemachus, son of Odysseus.[1][2][3]
Description and interpretation
[edit]Telemachus was shipwrecked off Calypso's island, and in this image she tells her nymphs to stop singing Odysseus's praises because of his son's grief.[3]
Other versions
[edit]Kauffman painted two other versions of this work: in 1788 (held by the Bündner Museum of Art in Chur, Switzerland, and in 1789 (sold by Christie's in London in April 1998).[4]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "The Sorrow of Telemachus". Metropolitan Museum of Art.
- ^ "Telemachus and the Nymphs of Calypso". Metropolitan Museum of Art.
- ^ a b Baetjer, Katharine (2009). "Angelika Kauffmann". British Paintings in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1575-1875. Metropolitan Museum of Art. pp. 138–142. ISBN 9781588393487. Retrieved 12 June 2017.
- ^ "Angelica Kauffman, R.A. (1741-1807): The Sorrow of Telemachus on the Island of Calypso". Sale 5939: British Pictures: 8 April 1998: London, King Street. Christie's. Retrieved 12 June 2017.