Leda and the Swan
1800
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
1800
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
Dominant colour
Leda and the Swan is a 1800 by S. Bennet, a Romanticism work, held at Victoria and Albert Museum.
This print shows a woman lying down beside a swan. Her body is turned toward him, and she looks relaxed, almost asleep. The swan’s head is close to hers, and his feathers blend into her hair. Around them, trees and bushes fill the background, but the focus stays on their quiet moment. The artist used smooth shading to make the figures look soft and real. The swan’s wings and the woman’s skin almost glow against the darker background. Look up chiaroscuro next to see how this lighting trick works.
This print depicts Leda and the Swan, based on Michelangelo’s composition, rendered in ink on paper and inscribed with the title and the provenance "From the Collection of R. Cosway, Esq."
Read the full account in the museum source.
English printmaker in the early 1800s, S. Bennet carved mythological scenes after known paintings so collectors could hang dramatic stories at home. Two prints in this set—*Leda and the Swan* and *Venus and Cupid*—show…
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