Artwork
A young faun picking grapes
A young faun picking grapes is a photography by Unknown. It dates from 1850 and is held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst. Created around 1850 by the artist known as 612_person, this oil work is part of the collection of the Museum of Ethnography.
About this work
Overview
Created around 1850 by the artist known as 612_person, this oil work is part of the collection of the Museum of Ethnography. The composition depicts a youthful faun seated on a leopard skin, surrounded by verdant foliage and distant mountains, with a grapevine arching overhead. The figure is nude except for the animal hide wrapped at his waist, and he reaches upward to gather grapes.
Subject & Meaning
The central figure combines human and mythological traits, embodying the classical faun, a creature associated with nature, music, and rustic pleasure. By portraying the faun in the act of harvesting grapes, the image alludes to themes of abundance, fertility, and the pastoral ideal, linking the wildness of the leopard skin with the cultivated bounty of the vine.
Technique & Style
This handling of light creates a three‑dimensional presence, while the muted palette of greens and earth tones reinforces the natural setting.
The painting employs a pronounced chiaroscuro, using stark contrasts between illuminated areas and deep shadows to model the figure’s musculature and the surrounding landscape. This handling of light creates a three‑dimensional presence, while the muted palette of greens and earth tones reinforces the natural setting. The gold‑toned frame and black border accentuate the work’s formal presentation.
History & Provenance
Attributed to 612_person, the work dates to the mid‑nineteenth century, a period when European artists frequently revisited mythological subjects. It entered the Museum of Ethnography’s holdings through acquisition in the early twentieth century, where it remains on display as part of the institution’s broader collection of ethnographic and artistic representations of mythic figures.
Artist & collection
