Photograph by Ed Pollard, Canon EOS 5D Mark II digital slr-2012.

Sappho

Artist James Pradier (French, 1790 - 1852)

CultureFrench

Dateca. 1852

MediumBronze

Dimensions33 x 30 x 15 3/4 in. (83.8 x 76.2 x 40 cm)

Credit LineGift of the Mowbray Arch Society, 2012

Object number2012.16

On View

Chrysler Museum of Art, Gallery 208

Label TextJames Pradier French, 1790–1852 Sappho, ca. 1852 Bronze Beauty overcome by melancholy—this is the essence of James Pradier’s vision of the ancient Greek writer Sappho, who was famous in antiquity for her lyric poetry on the themes of love and passion. Pradier shows her in a flowing Greek tunic rich with rippling folds, her hair pulled back and her jewelry polished to a golden gloss. She is young and beautiful, but lost in thought, her head bowed and her pen, scroll, and lyre untouched. Legend has it that Sappho, rejected in love, committed suicide. Could she be contemplating that fatal act here? Gift of the Mowbray Arch Society 2012.16 ProvenanceShepherd and Derom Galleries, New York, NY; Purchase of the Mowbray Arch Society for Chrysler Museum of Art, December 4, 2012.Exhibition History"Mowbray Arch Society 2012," Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, VA, November 28 - December 5, 2012.