Scene fra Voltaires "Le triumvirat", formodentlig 2.akt., 2.scene 1798 - 1801

Editor: Here we have Nicolai Abildgaard's "Scene fra Voltaires 'Le triumvirat', formodentlig 2.akt., 2.scene," a pencil drawing made between 1798 and 1801. I'm struck by the starkness of it, the sort of dramatic lighting, and the very theatrical poses of the figures. What's your read on it? Curator: Oh, this one! It whispers stories of revolution, doesn't it? Abildgaard, flirting with Neoclassicism, translates Voltaire's drama into stark lines and suggestive shadows. Do you sense the tension crackling? Editor: Absolutely, it's palpable. Is it meant to reflect a specific political climate, maybe the French Revolution and its aftermath? Curator: Precisely! The play itself, hinting at power struggles and the corrupting nature of ambition. And Abildgaard, a clever egg, uses that setting to reflect the turbulence in Denmark during that time. But notice how he distills the drama—almost like a stage set waiting for the players. Makes you wonder what dialogue is about to explode, right? Editor: It really does. And the female figure at the right, gazing upwards—what is she looking at? Hope, or resignation? Curator: Aha! Now you're getting at the heart of it. Is it blind faith, perhaps? Or maybe a challenge to fate? She is illuminated differently than the rest. Abildgaard likes riddles wrapped in pretty pictures, I suspect. These neoclassicists used dramatic presentation to mask all types of symbolic language to get around authority. Tricky folks! Editor: It is rather fascinating. Thanks. It really adds layers to how I see it, and how relevant art can be, even when tackling narratives from centuries ago. Curator: Exactly. And remember: it’s the questions the art provokes, the conversations it starts, that truly bring it alive. Even now. Perhaps now more than ever, eh?