Sculptuur van Amor en Psyche in de Capitolijnse Musea te Rome c. 1857 - 1875

Editor: This photograph by James Anderson, taken sometime between 1857 and 1875, captures a marble sculpture of Cupid and Psyche now housed at the Rijksmuseum. The stark contrast in the photo gives the sculpture an almost ethereal quality, making the figures seem like they are emerging from the darkness. What strikes you about this image? Curator: Immediately, the intertwining of the figures grabs my attention. It’s not just the physical embrace but what that embrace *represents* that fascinates me. In the context of art history and its enduring impact on our visual language, this scene depicts a pivotal moment of reunion, of love and soul finally connecting. Think about the loaded symbolism: Cupid, or Eros, representing passionate desire; Psyche, representing the soul. The kiss, framed within such exquisite Neoclassical ideals, becomes an allegory of profound, spiritual connection. How do you interpret Psyche's hand gesture? Editor: She seems hesitant, almost like she is discovering something new. Curator: Precisely. Her touch conveys a mixture of awe, trepidation, and burgeoning understanding. The sculpture itself has its roots in ancient narratives of transformation. What happens when these narratives, already laden with symbolism, get reinterpreted and reshaped by artists centuries later? Editor: It layers meanings, connecting different periods of artistic and cultural expression. It becomes a conversation between the past and the present. Curator: Exactly! Neoclassicism was obsessed with retrieving and reshaping antiquity, but photography introduced another level of replication. Anderson’s image reframes a reproduction and becomes another object to study. How does understanding that cultural journey affect your view of the sculpture itself? Editor: I appreciate how it makes a classical ideal tangible and brings the old story to the modern age, one visual encoding at a time.