Dyck, Anthony van (1599-1641)
Sir Anthony Van Dyck
etching

Anonymous
Laocoon
red and yellow chalk with white heightening
circa 1650

Juvenel, Paul, I (1579-1643)
Renaissance style Chapel Interior
pen and brown ink with grey and blue wash
1609

Huber, Wolfgang (1485-1553)
A Rocky Landscape with a Bridge in the Foreground
pen and black ink with grey wash
1552

"Laocoon was the Trojan priest who warned his compatriots that the infamous wooden horse was a Greek trick; not only was he ignored but the Greek gods permanently silenced him by sending giant serpents to kill him and his sons. This legend is the subject of the 'Laocoon' group, an antique sculpture which has a legacy unlike that of any other..." (1)

"...In the eighteenth century the priest's face was a topic of debate for Winckelmann, Lessing and others concerned with whether Laocoon expressed nobility in death. There was also unease because the father appeared self-absorbed and more concerned with his own predicament than with saving his sons."  (2)

(Stephen Feeke, 'Legacies of the Laocoon' in 'Towards a New Laocoon', Penelope Curtis and Stephen Feeke (ed.), Henry Moore Institute, 2007, (1) p.9, (2) Ibid, p.12.)

"The glance over the shoulder had been used by artists before Van Dyck to convey powers of intellect. The turn of the body in space is particularly effective, suggesting that his attention is being momentarily distracted from something else. With proud bearing, Van Dyck projects an aura of confidence."

[Ref: Fitzmuseum website]


Ryan Riddington
MFA Sculpture (First Year)