Cupid and Psyche
Jacques Louis David·1817
Historical Context
Cupid and Psyche, completed in 1817 during David's Brussels exile, depicts the mythological lovers at the moment of Cupid's departure at dawn. The subject — drawn from Apuleius's "Golden Ass" — represented a radical departure for the painter of the "Oath of the Horatii" and the "Death of Marat." David's austere oil technique rejected all Rococo softness in favor of a firm, sculptural handling that emphasized drawing over color—figures modelled like antique reliefs against neutral...
Technical Analysis
The smooth, porcelain-like flesh painting and precisely drawn forms demonstrate David's technical mastery even in his late sixties. The controversial smirking Cupid and the idealized Psyche are rendered with an almost clinical detachment that contemporary critics found unsettling.
