Das Institut für Klassische Philologie lädt ein
zu einem

Gastvortrag

am Mittwoch, dem 30. Mai 2012, um 18.30 Uhr

Friedrichstraße 191, Raum 4031, Eingang Kronenstr. 12

Richard Warren

Durham University

Modern Receptions of an Ancient Hero:
The Figure of Arminius (Hermann) in the Paintings
of Angelika Kauffmann (1741-1807) and Alfons Mucha (1860-1939)

My current project examines how northern tribal heroes and heroines from Tacitus' Annals and Histories were depicted in nineteenth-century art. Focusing exclusively on painting and sculpture, it traces the use of these figures in art with a nationalist context. In this paper I will compare how the Swiss neo-classical artist Angelika Kauffmann (1741-1807) and the Czech Secessionist artist Alfons Mucha (1860-1939) chose to portray Tacitus' Arminius, and try and explain why they each did this as they did. Standing at each end of my period they demonstrate well the range of takes different artists had on this subject.