Danaë
1623
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
About the artist
Artist
Orazio Gentileschi
Orazio Lomi Gentileschi (Italian pronunciation: ; 1563 – 7 February 1639) was an Italian painter.
See the richer artist page1623
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
Danaë is a 1623 unspecified by Orazio Gentileschi, a Baroque work, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.
This painting shows a woman lying on a bed, her head resting on one arm. Gold coins spill from the sky around her like a rain of light. Her face glows with quiet surprise, not fear. Gentileschi painted her big and close, like she’s right in front of you. The gold feels warm and heavy, not just flat paint. He learned this trick from Caravaggio—bold light and dark called chiaroscuro—but his touches stay softer. It’s at the Cleveland Museum of Art.
Danaë’s father feared a prophecy that his grandson would kill him, so he imprisoned his daughter to protect her from suitors. Yet Jupiter, king of the gods, fell in love with Danaë, and he came to her in the form of gold streaming from the sky. Gentileschi adopted Caravaggio’s method of painting directly from models, pulled to the front of the picture plane, which gives the painting a startling, tangible quality. However, the graceful way he handled paint and human gestures lends the work a poetic quality unique to the artist.
The gauzy scarf draped over Danaë was a studio prop present in many of Orazio's paintings.
Read the full account in the museum source.
Orazio Lomi Gentileschi (Italian pronunciation: ; 1563 – 7 February 1639) was an Italian painter.
See the richer artist page
