Dante's Bark 1840 - 1860

Eugène Delacroix painted "Dante's Bark" using oil on canvas, capturing a scene from Dante Alighieri's "Inferno." Painted in the early 19th century, this work aligns with the Romantic movement's fascination with emotion and the sublime. Delacroix pulls from Dante's narrative, where the poet, accompanied by Virgil, is ferried across the river Styx into hell. The painting mirrors the social and political turbulence of post-revolutionary France. Dante, an exile himself, embodies the era's themes of alienation and struggle. Institutions like the French Academy shaped artistic taste. However, Delacroix, while engaging with classical themes, broke from Neoclassical conventions, emphasizing color and drama. A study of literary sources, historical context, and the Academy's influence helps us to see how Delacroix's work, while rooted in tradition, also challenged the aesthetic and social norms of his time.