_(follower_of)_-_Bacchus_and_Infant_Fauns_-_186_-_Glasgow_Museums_Resource_Centre.jpg&width=1200)
Bacchus and Infant Fauns
Luca Giordano·c. 1670
Historical Context
Bacchus and Infant Fauns in Glasgow depicts the wine god with his mythological companions, a celebratory subject from classical mythology. Giordano treated Bacchic themes with the exuberant energy that made him one of the most versatile painters of the Italian Baroque. Giordano's mythological canvases display his absorption of Venetian colorism, deploying warm flesh tones and lavish drapery against luminous skies with the fluency of a born decorative painter. These works circulated across Eur...
Technical Analysis
The fleshy figures of Bacchus and the infant fauns are rendered with sensuous naturalism and warm flesh tones. The composition's informal arrangement conveys the carefree spirit of the Bacchic revels.
Look Closer
- ◆Notice the sensuous naturalism of the Bacchic figures — fleshy Bacchus and infant fauns are rendered with warm flesh tones that make mythological revelry feel convincingly physical.
- ◆Look at the informal arrangement conveying the carefree spirit of the Bacchic revels: Giordano deliberately resists formal composition to suggest the spontaneous pleasures of the wine god's court.
- ◆Find the exuberant energy that makes this Glasgow work characteristic of Giordano's approach to mythological subjects: the same 'fa presto' confidence that animates his battle scenes here creates celebratory warmth.
- ◆Observe that mythological Bacchic subjects were popular for their combination of sensuous figure painting and classical legitimacy — collectors could enjoy displays of flesh painting under the respectable cover of ancient mythology.
