Orpheus en de dieren 1677 - 1755

Elias van Nijmegen rendered this drawing, "Orpheus and the Animals," using pen and brown ink. Nijmegen was working in the late 17th and early 18th centuries, a period defined by baroque sensibilities, and he embraced decorative painting for wealthy Dutch patrons. Here, Orpheus, the legendary musician and poet, is depicted charming a menagerie with his lyre. In classical mythology, Orpheus could charm all living things and even stones with his music; this drawing visualizes this dominance. The animals, rendered in a range of detail from careful to hasty, gather around him, embodying a harmony that transcends the natural order. This drawing and its subject can be viewed through an intersectional lens. Orpheus, as a figure of divine artistry, represents a kind of mastery over the natural world. This raises questions about power, control, and our relationship with the environment, subjects that resonate powerfully today.