MWW Artwork of the Day (9/26/19) Edward Burne-Jones (British, 1833-1898) Perseus Cycle #7: The Doom Fulfilled (1888) Oil on canvas, 155 x 140.5 cm. Stattsgalerie, Stuttgart
Burne-Jones produced "cycles" of canvases on religious, Arthurian, medieval, and mythological themes. The painting above is from one of his last of these "cycles" -- one dealing with the legendary Greek hero Perseus, semi-divine founder of Mycenae, slayer of the Gorgon and Medusa. Here in the seventh canvas in the cycle we see him rescuing "Ethiopian" princess Andromeda from a sea monster sent by sea-god Poseidon in retribution for Queen Cassiopeia declaring herself more beautiful than the sea nymphs. Perseus' exploits had been fertile fodder for artists (and dramatists) for more than two millennia but none had quite designed such an visually appealing monster before. The scene combines some of the gracefulness of Botticelli's figures with the condensed composition and starkly contrasting colored forms of a medieval stained glass window.
