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| Phryne before the Areopagus , 1861 Oil on canvas, 80 x 128 cm Jean-Leon Gerome, Kunsthalle Hamburg. |
"The word has been given to man to conceal his thoughts"
Formerly Ares here were tried for killing the rapist of his daughter Alcippe, and Orestes had climbed the mountain to be subjected to the will of the gods for Clytemnestra's murder, his mother. First the gods, then men. The court had already lost their political power for some time, but today I had to deal with an issue that still competed. In that room were quite a few personalities, highlighting Praxiteles, the most gifted sculptors, and Hyperides, known to all Greeks, a disciple of Plato, and one of the ten speakers attics, who was there at the request of Praxiteles, to stand up for his muse. And all eyes fell on this, female role model and inspiration of the sculpture and Greek art, hetaira Phryne, EUTI accused of impiety and of revealing the Eleusinian mysteries. The war of words was relentless, and seeing Hyperides could not convince the judges tore the dress of Phryne in one fell swoop, revealing the nakedness of the woman, who had so often represented as a model for the sculptures of the goddess Aphrodite. And when he claimed before the judges could not deprive the world of such beauty. In itself the body of Phryne was a monument to the goddess.
not comment much more about this work. It represents the climax of the trial, and there is a stark contrast between the motion, shaking and skin tones and red palette used in the rulers, and quietness, modesty and clarity of the skin of Phryne, which only covers the eyes, leaving her body in view of the judges. After she Hyperides is the counterpoint to red to light blue dress of Phryne, and her own clothing of a cold blue.
"Before you, poor devil, unforgettable
I felt all peaks and all the jaws
lancinating of ravens and black panthers
That in his time, both liked to shred my flesh .
The Flowers of Evil Baudelaire
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