Hercules and Dejanira by Hendrick Goltzius

Hercules and Dejanira c. 1590

drawing, gouache, ink, indian-ink

drawing

netherlandish

toned paper

gouache

charcoal drawing

possibly oil pastel

11_renaissance

charcoal art

oil painting

ink

fluid art

acrylic on canvas

coffee painting

underpainting

indian-ink

13_16th-century

watercolor

Hendrick Goltzius's "Hercules and Dejanira" (c. 1590) depicts the mythical couple embracing beneath a tree. This pen and ink drawing, now at the Städel Museum, portrays Hercules and Dejanira in a moment of intimacy, their bodies intertwined. The artist's skill is evident in the detailed rendering of their musculature and the dramatic use of chiaroscuro, creating a sense of depth and volume. The composition is set against a picturesque landscape, adding to the work's romantic and melancholic tone. This piece exemplifies Goltzius's mastery of drawing and his exploration of classical mythology.

Comments

stadelmuseum over 1 year ago

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After his return from Italy in 1591, Goltzius increasingly concentrated on designing compositions which other engravers then realised for his publishing house. The two drawings obj. nos. 1792 Z and 1793 Z are examples of such designs. While Goltzius used the pen only sparsely for the outlines, he modelled the bodies with a brush and set delicate accents of light with white opaque paint. He did not draw the line structure of the engraving but created a tonal and painterly chiaroscuro effect with generous brush washes, which the engraver then had to transfer into the hatching patterns of the copperplate.The motifs of obj. nos. 1792 Z and 1793 Z belong to a series of four ""Loves of the Gods"". Hercules is depicted with his mistress Dejanira; in the background he shoots the centaur Nessos while the latter tries to kidnap Dejanira.