Fall of the Giants c. 18th century

Curator: Here we have "Fall of the Giants" by Pierre Étienne Moitte, part of the collection at the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: Wow, it's... well, it’s a bit of a pile-up, isn't it? Gods on clouds, giants getting clobbered. Very dramatic! Curator: Indeed. Observe how Moitte has structured the composition. The dynamism is achieved through contrasting diagonals—the soaring gods versus the tumbling giants. Editor: Right. There's this real sense of the gods being untouchable, elevated. And then the giants are all tangled up. Kinda makes you wonder what they did to get the gods so riled up. Curator: The engraving technique allows for these incredibly fine details, accentuating the musculature and emotional turmoil. Editor: Yeah, you can almost feel the weight of that club coming down! It’s funny though, even in defeat, there's something powerful about these giants. Maybe it's their sheer size, even prone. Curator: A complex interplay of power dynamics, visualized. Editor: Makes you think about who's really falling here. Are the gods rising, or just reacting? Food for thought.