Silver Age (Orpheus) 1886

Gustave Moreau made this painting entitled 'Silver Age (Orpheus)' during the late nineteenth century, a period defined by both its embrace of classical ideals and the rise of Symbolism. Moreau's Orpheus, stands nude, crowned with leaves, beside a tree, and looks forlorn. Meanwhile, a ghostly winged figure rises, bearing a musical instrument. The artist draws on the ancient Greek myth, where Orpheus, a divinely gifted musician, could charm all living things with his lyre. After the death of his wife Eurydice, Orpheus' grief led him to reject the company of women, and he was subsequently torn apart by a group of Maenads. In Moreau's telling, the male figure of Orpheus is both eroticized and vulnerable, while the ethereal winged figure might suggest a spiritualized or androgynous aspect of the male identity. In this emotional tableau, Moreau invites us to reflect on the complexities of desire, loss, and transformation.