The Drunken Hercules, Essay Example

The Drunken Hercules by P. P. Rubens, Bacchus, Dionysus by N. Poussin and A Cherub Carrying Flowers by A. Carracci

The Drunken Hercules by Peter Paul Rubens depicts Hercules in a queer way. We see him, not during his mythological labors, but in “drunken indulgence and loss of self-mastery” (Rosenthal, 2005, p. 99). He leans with his mighty body on the satyrs, maenads that made the usual retinue of Bacchus. Thus, the hero loses the heroic usually endowed to him by ancient artists. As in most early works of Rubens, the composition scheme is derived from ancient Greek or Roman sculpture.

Rosenthal emphasizes unique allegorical context of The Drunken Hercules proving artist’s extensive knowledge of mythology (Rosenthal, 2005, p. 100). In spite of the genre “Rubens exhibited extraordinary learning and imagination” (Liedtke).

The painting represents peculiarities inherent to the style of Rubens. They made him the founder of Baroque style in painting. Rubens strived to combine Flemish realism with classical features renewed by Italian Renaissance artists. His works are full of energy, swift movement and bright colors. They portray in extremely detailed way massive bodies liked by his contemporaries.

The central image of Annibale Carracci’s A Cherub Carrying Flowers is a chubby child fixed in the air. He is holding flowers in his hands. His wings are stretched, but he does not appear motionless. The stopped movement is also shown by the posture; the position of the body seems unnatural for flying. His gaze is directed upwards; as if something inaccessible to the viewer has stopped him. The chiaroscuros (shadows on the forehead, wings, beneath the toes) create volume effect perception and show curves of the body in a remarkably detailed way. The smallest strokes of oil draw flowers petals, blond-brown locks, fingers and toes.

Annibale Carracci sought to reform Italian painting by discarding Mannerist principles and resorting to the study of nature. It allowed him to reach extensive naturalism in depicting people and events. He combined northern Italian naturalism with idealism in Roman painting; he was excellent draftsman and colorist. He did not participate in the discussion of drawing based or coloring based technique priority, but worked to incorporate both of them. These experiments in painting were accepted among the foundations of Baroque art and had a significant impact on P. P. Rubens and N. Poussin. Among major characteristics of his art, Christiansen names concentration on emotional communication, broken brushstroke to capture movement, peculiar effects of light and form, riot of colors (Christiansen).

The art of Nicolas Poussin stands apart. Though Nicolas Poussin derived inspiration from antique times and Italian Renaissance, he transformed subject matters in accordance with his own idea. In pursuit of own path in painting Poussin contrasted his “sensitivity to the nuances of gesture, design, color, and handling, which he varied according to the theme at hand” with Baroque principles (Sprinson de Jesús).

Bacchus, Dionysus by Poussin represents the image of Bacchus surrounded by cherubs helping him to make his toilet. One of the cherubs is crowns Bacchus with grape leaves wreath.  The slender figure of Bacchus holding a thyrsus capped with a pine cone is drawn with vague lines.  By his side, Apollo is sitting. The images are contrasted symbolically as the embodiment of passions (Dionysus) and reason (Apollo). It is also underlined by compositional scheme, i.e. the nakedness of Bacchus and clothing of Apollo.

The above-mentioned works of Carracci, Ruben, and Poussin reveal main characteristics of the Baroque painting. These artists tried to initiate reforms in painting through pointed dynamism, florid colors, corpulent forms, the color composition in which the chief elements are singled out by light and color.

References

Christiansen, K. (2003, October). Annibale Carracci (1560–1609). Retrieved July 8, 2010 from http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/carr/hd_carr.htm.

Liedtke, W. (2003, October). Peter Paul Rubens (1577–1640) and Anthony van Dyck (1599– 1641): Paintings. Retrieved July 8, 2010 fromttp://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/rvd_p/hd_rvd_p.htm.

Rosenthal, L. (2005). Gender, politics and allegory in the art of Rubens. Cambridge University Press.

Sprinson de Jesús, M. (2003, October). Nicolas Poussin (1594–1665). Retrieved July 8, 2010 from http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/pous/hd_pous.htm