Studie til "Dædalus og Ikarus" 1879 - 1910

Oluf Hartmann made this study for "Daedalus and Icarus" in charcoal and pencil on paper. The story of Daedalus and Icarus is a potent one, especially in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It's a Greek myth about human ingenuity, but also about the limits of human knowledge. Here, Hartmann depicts Daedalus attaching the wings to Icarus, who stands passively. We know that the story ends with Icarus flying too close to the sun, his wax wings melting, and him falling to his death. The myth would have resonated in a time when there were many new technological advances, like flight, but also many new dangers. Art historians often look at how artists engage with political and social issues through the lens of classical mythology, and the story of Daedalus and Icarus provided a particularly fertile ground for this kind of engagement. Understanding the context in which Hartmann was working helps us understand the artwork better.