Paolo et Francesca

This version of Paolo and Francesca from 1814 at the Conde Museum in Chantilly is an earlier treatment of the Dantesque subject that Ingres returned to throughout his career. The lovers' story from the Inferno was a quintessentially Romantic subject approached with Neo-classical technique. His portraits are celebrated for their combination of photographic precision and subtle psychological penetration, and remain among the greatest achievements of nineteenth-century European painting.

The intimate composition captures the fatal kiss with Ingres's precise linear style. The carefully controlled contours and smooth surface create an image where classical technique serves Romantic passion.