Summit of Malebolge 1807

Editor: This is John Flaxman's "Summit of Malebolge," and it's a stark, linear engraving. The contorted bodies and the devilish figure really make me wonder about its message. What's your read on this piece? Curator: Flaxman's images, often commissioned for book illustrations, tap into a late 18th-century fascination with the epic and the moral. This one depicts a scene from Dante's Inferno. How does the depiction of the bodies strike you in relation to the poem’s themes of sin and punishment? Editor: They seem to lack a sense of grandeur, almost like simple outlines. Curator: Precisely. Flaxman deliberately eschewed baroque drama for a neoclassical restraint. He's making a statement about the public role of art—moving away from the spectacle of power and towards a more austere vision of justice and morality. Editor: So it’s less about the spectacle of hell and more about the social commentary? Curator: Exactly. The print's availability also democratizes access to these narratives, shifting art's function from courtly display to wider cultural instruction. Editor: I see now. The simplicity emphasizes the moral lesson instead of glorifying power, very interesting.