Stefano Trapanese (1963) - Sathir and bacchante (Satiro e baccante) MYTHOS

The subject
The painting depicts, artistically, a sculptural group based on the myth of the 'Satyr with the Baccante,' by the Franco-Swiss sculptor Jean Jacques Pradier. It was presented in 1834 at the Salon Carré of the Louvre Museum in Paris. The satyr, a mythological character hybrid between man and goat, seizes the Baccante, who, in a static pose, clings to the neck of the rural deity that symbolizes temptation and desire. Observing the sculpture, one wonders whether the girl, clearly intoxicated, is offering herself to her lover or, conversely, trying to escape his advances.
Painting dimensions, sold without a frame, 120x80cm.

Curiosity
Pradier's work, at the time, caused great scandal and sparked endless gossip. That sculpture, which today can be considered at most sensual, was even seen as pornographic back then.
Velenose rumors, probably spread by mediocre colleagues evidently driven by envy, suggested that Pradier had used a life cast to create the Baccante, a practice unacceptable at the time. Someone soon recognized, in the features of the nude girl, Juliette Drouet, Pradier's lover who would later become the concubine and muse of the writer Victor Hugo.



The Subject
The painting pictorially depicts a sculptural group, created based on the myth of the 'Satyr with the Bacchante', by the French-Swiss sculptor Jean Jacques Pradier. It was exhibited in 1834 at the Salon Carrè of the Louvre Museum in Paris. The satyr, a mythological hybrid creature between man and goat, seizes the Bacchante, who, in an ecstatic pose, clings to the neck of the rural divinity symbolizing temptation and desire. Looking at the sculpture, one wonders whether the girl, clearly in a state of intoxication, offers herself to her lover or whether, on the contrary, she tries to escape his assaults.
Dimension, sold without frame, 47.2 in x 31.4 in

CURIOSITY
Pradier's work, in his time, caused great scandal and gave rise to endless rumors. That sculpture, which today can be considered sensual at best, was even seen as pornographic at the time.
Poisonous rumors, probably spread by mediocre colleagues evidently moved by envy, insinuated that Pradier had used a life cast to create the Bacchante, an unacceptable practice at that time. Someone did not take long to recognize, in the features of the naked girl, Juliette Drouet, Pradier's lover who would later become the concubine and muse of the writer Victor Hugo.