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John Flaxman

Pernicious Dream, ca. 1792-1793

Description

Maker

  • John Flaxman, 1755 - 1826, English

Title

Pernicious Dream

Year

ca. 1792-1793

Medium

Pen and ink with graphite framing lines

Materials/Techniques

Materials

  • pen and ink

Dimensions

21.6 x 27.9 cm (8 1/2 x 11 inches)

Type

  • Works on Paper,
  • Drawings and Watercolors

Credit

Gift of Mrs. Gustav Radeke

Object Number

21.126

About

A radiant Jupiter sits on his throne in the heavens, ordering the floating figure of Dream to visit the Greek hero Agamemnon in his tent. Dream is to convey misleading advice to immediately attack the Trojans for a quick victory—a move that would spark the beginning of the ten-year Trojan War.

After working as a modeler for the ceramics manufactory Wedgwood and a brief stay in Rome, English sculptor and draftsman John Flaxman became famous for his line drawings illustrating classic literary works. His crisp, continuous outlines and minimal use of shading, influenced by engravings after Greek vases, conveyed a sense of classical purity. This final preparatory drawing was engraved by Thomas Piroli and published in a 1793 edition of Homer’s ancient poem, The Iliad.

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Projects & Publications

Publications

Old Master Drawings from the Museum of Art, Rhode Island School of Design

Exhibition History

Exhibition History

From Dürer to Van Gogh

June 5 - October 26, 2008

This is one of 39 illustrations for Alexander Pope’s translation of Homer’s Iliad, published in 1793 with engravings after John Flaxman’s designs. The text, “Fly hence deluding Dream! As light as air/ To Agamememnon’s [sic] ample tent repair,” refers to the god Zeus’s sinister decision to send King Agamemnon a false dream and incite battle between the Greeks and Trojans, a battle that Agamemnon’s Greeks would surely lose, or so Zeus thought. Flaxman combines the scene of Zeus on his heavenly throne with the sleeping Agamemnon.

Old Master Drawings

September 2 - October 16, 1983

The Age of Canova

November 6 - December 15, 1957

Use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use. This object is in the public domain (CC0 1.0). This object is Pernicious Dream with the accession number of 21.126. To request high-resolution files or new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.

Feedback

We view our online collection as a living documents, and our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you have additional information or have spotted an error, please send feedback to curatorial@risd.edu.

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