The Love of Paris and Helen by Jacques-Louis David

''The Loves of Paris and Helen'' is a 1788 oil-on-canvas painting by the French Neoclassical artist Jacques-Louis David, showing Helen of Troy and

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

from

Homer Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...

's ''

Iliad The ''Iliad'' (; grc, Ἰλιάς, Iliás, ; "a poem about Ilium") is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the '' Odys ...

''. It is now in the

Louvre Museum The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...

. The painting was the result of a commission from the

comte d'Artois Charles X (born Charles Philippe, Count of Artois; 9 October 1757 – 6 November 1836) was King of France from 16 September 1824 until 2 August 1830. An uncle of the uncrowned Louis XVII and younger brother to reigning kings Louis XVI and Loui ...

. It shows David in his 'galante' phase and was interpreted as a satire on the manners of the comte d'Artois. The

caryatid A caryatid ( or or ; grc, Καρυᾶτις, pl. ) is a sculpted female figure serving as an architectural support taking the place of a column or a pillar supporting an entablature on her head. The Greek term ''karyatides'' literally means "ma ...

s in the background are copies of those by

Jean Goujon Jean Goujon (c. 1510 – c. 1565)Thirion, Jacques (1996). "Goujon, Jean" in ''The Dictionary of Art'', edited by Jane Turner; vol. 13, pp. 225–227. London: Macmillan. Reprinted 1998 with minor corrections: . was a French Renaissance sculpt ...

in the Louvre.

External links

Cartelfr.louvre.fr
*Étienne Coche de La Ferté and Julien Guey, "Analyse archéologique et psychologique d'un tableau de David : ''Les Amours de Pâris et d'Hélène''", Revue archéologique, vol. XL, 1952, p. 129-61 {{DEFAULTSORT:Loves of Paris and Helen, The Mythological paintings by Jacques-Louis David 1788 paintings Paintings in the Louvre by French artists Paintings depicting Greek myths Musical instruments in art Paintings based on the Iliad

See also

External links