The Infant Hercules Strangling Serpents in His Crade 1788

Curator: My initial impression is drama. This painting surges with a turbulent energy—the figures writhe in terror and the infant is anything but helpless. Editor: Indeed. What we're viewing is Sir Joshua Reynolds's "The Infant Hercules Strangling Serpents in His Cradle," painted in 1788. You can find it housed in the Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg. Curator: Ah, Reynolds tackling mythology! Hercules, even as a babe, displaying his immense strength against the snakes sent by Hera. The imagery is incredibly potent. It really leans into that concept of innate power. Editor: Precisely, the image resonated deeply within its socio-political context. Reynolds, as the first president of the Royal Academy, championed history painting. Presenting virtuous subjects and morality in visual form for public betterment. It mirrored the prevailing ideologies during the rise of the British Empire, projecting notions of British strength. Curator: But consider the snakes—serpents are frequently seen as symbols of chaos, hidden threats and darkness, or untapped potential. A battle is raging, a child battling primeval forces... It strikes a resonant chord at the unconscious level. Are they also indicative of Hera’s resentment? Editor: Well, myth tells us she was infuriated by Zeus’s infidelity. It reflects anxieties regarding succession, legitimacy, even divine right in leadership, themes certainly not absent from British public life then. Curator: Interesting, yes, so relevant. The use of dark chiaroscuro amplifies the drama—it heightens the inherent struggle between good and evil. The figures emerge from and are consumed by shadow. That ambiguity underscores the psychological battle between Hercules' nature and Hera’s intent. The mothers seem terrified, there are others trying to intervene. It reminds of us those hidden battles that we see within families and childhood, and this moment of terror that must have unfolded for those present at the moment of Heracles beginning to strangle the snakes. Editor: Moreover, the painting technique reveals something. Reynolds used layers of oil paint and glazes. The intention would have been to present a refined visual culture but which arguably degraded, revealing artifice. How the painting looks has had its own history of debates within the academy regarding proper presentation of the arts. Curator: This is certainly a layered history. From personal struggles to empire's aspirations. This makes you question what really underlies them, this powerful imagery we see, how it's both revealing and perhaps, obscuring something important. Editor: Yes, there are so many facets and considerations that make this work enduringly fascinating, not merely a relic of its time.