Artwork
Merkurs og Psykes flugt
Merkurs og Psykes flugt is an oil painting by the Rococo painting artist Eric Paulsen. It is held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
Mercury, depicted with winged sandals and a caduceus, escorts Psyche, clothed in flowing garments, through an ethereal space.
The painting shows Mercury and Psyche in motion, representing the myth of their flight together. Mercury, depicted with winged sandals and a caduceus, escorts Psyche, clothed in flowing garments, through an ethereal space. The scene illustrates the transformative love and trial of Psyche, a central motif in classical mythology. The work belongs to the mythological painting genre, emphasizing narrative drama drawn from ancient sources.
The composition highlights the symbolic journey of the soul toward enlightenment, with Mercury guiding Psyche as a metaphor for divine intervention in earthly struggles. This theme resonates with Enlightenment-era interpretations of myth as allegory for human aspiration and spiritual ascent.
Technique & Style
Merkurs og Psykes flugt is executed in oil paint on canvas, a standard combination for late eighteenth-century European easel painting. The work is mythological in subject matter, depicting Mercury and Psyche.
The canvas measures 2470 mm in height and 1725 mm in width, giving it a pronounced vertical orientation suited to the upward flight of its figures. It is held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst.
Legacy
Merkurs og Psykes flugt (1782) by Eric Paulsen emerged as a visual reference for Romantic reinterpretations of classical mythology, particularly influencing later artists who explored themes of transcendence and emotional intensity. Its depiction of mythological narrative through a neoclassical composition contributed to scholarly discussions on 18th-century mythological painting in Scandinavia, cited in academic analyses of Paulsen's oeuvre and the broader cultural reception of mythological subjects in European art.
The work remains part of the permanent collection at Statens Museum for Kunst, where it is studied within the context of Enlightenment-era artistic engagement with classical texts.
Overview
Erik Pauelsen’s 1792 oil painting, Merkurs og Psykes flugt, portrays the mythic escape of Mercury and Psyche. The composition centers on two airborne figures against a muted gray sky, with a faint landscape hinted at the lower edge. The work is part of the Statens Museum for Kunst’s collection and exemplifies the late Rococo aesthetic in Danish art.
History & Provenance
Created two years after the artist’s death, Pauelsen died by suicide in 1790, the painting entered the national collection of Statens Museum for Kunst, where it remains on display. Though contemporaneous with more celebrated Danish painters such as Jens Juel and Nicolai Abildgaard, Pauelsen’s reputation never reached comparable prominence.
Context
In the late eighteenth century, Danish art was transitioning from the decorative Rococo toward the emerging Neoclassicism championed by Abildgaard. Pauelsen’s work, with its mythological subject and graceful execution, reflects the lingering Rococo taste for mythic romance while hinting at the more disciplined approach that would soon dominate Danish academies.
Artist & collection
Artist
Erik Pauelsen (2 or 14 October 1749 – 20 February 1790) was a Danish painter. He is most notable for his landscapes and was also a popular portraitist. However, he did not experience the same level of success as Jens…
