Amor und Psyche

Amor und Psyche from 1792, now in the Kunsthaus Zürich, treats the mythological love story of Cupid and Psyche — drawn from Apuleius's Golden Ass — that was among the most beloved subjects of Neoclassical art. The story's themes of love tested through trials, of human aspiration toward divine perfection, and of the ultimate union of the soul with love made it philosophically resonant for the Neoclassical sensibility, and Canova, Thorvaldsen, and Fragonard as well as Kauffmann all treated the subject in works of considerable ambition. Kauffmann's version emphasizes the tender, romantic aspects of the tale, appropriate to both her own sensibility and the taste of her late-18th-century audience. The Kunsthaus Zürich holds this as a significant work by Switzerland's most internationally celebrated painter, claiming Kauffmann for Swiss cultural heritage despite the predominantly Italian and British contexts of her working life. The 1792 date places this in her mature Roman period, when her technical command was complete and her approach to mythological subjects — soft modeling, warm color, graceful elongated figures — was fully formed. The painting demonstrates her ability to treat the sentimental mythological subject with genuine emotional depth rather than mere decorative elegance.

The mythological scene is rendered with Kauffmann's characteristic elegance, with soft modeling and warm color creating a mood of tender romance within the classical narrative.