Ulysses Listening To Demodocus Pen And Lavis

A rare and unique piece, this ink, pen and wash drawing comes from a series of several original works, from the dispersal of a private collection. Produced at the end of the 18th century, it is part of the line of creations of the famous John Flaxman (1755-1826), a great British illustrator, and his studio. Intended to illustrate Homer's Odyssey, this masterpiece combines the finesse of the line, the richness of the shadows and the mastery of the wash, characteristics that mark Flaxman's first graphic explorations before his period of simple outline line drawing on plain paper, adopted a few years later.
Historical and artistic context: John Flaxman, a major figure of neoclassicism, is known for his illustrations of major literary works such as Homer's Iliad and Odyssey. This drawing is part of the first stylistic experiments of the master and his followers, where the complexity of the shadows and the flexibility of the forms highlight mythological scenes. Unlike the refined contours adopted later (1793-1795), this technique of mixing wash and ink highlights an exceptional richness and depth in the interpretation of Homeric iconography.
Technique: Indian ink and wash applied with a pen and extremely fine brushes.
Support: High-quality watermarked paper, produced by the famous Maison Van der Ley (Holland), one of the most renowned papermakers in Europe in the 18th century, guaranteeing ideal conservation of pigments and details.
Artistic characteristics: Delicate shadows, subtle play of light and flexibility of the line, highlighting the elegance and technical mastery of the designer.

Dimensions without frame: Approximately 41 x 30 cm.
Framing: High-quality mat, ready to display.
Condition: Excellent, with pigments and support perfectly preserved despite their age.

A model inspired by the Odyssey: The work illustrates a mythological scene taken from the Homeric epic, immortalizing one of the many episodes of the Odyssey. This illustration testifies to the constant dialogue between art and literature, where drawing brilliantly interprets Homer's timeless stories through a neoclassical aesthetic.
Why is this work exceptional?
Original piece from the 18th century, witness to the creative process around the great Homeric illustrations.
Prestigious watermarked paper, typical of the workshops of excellence of the time.
Rare combination of ink, pen and wash in the works of this period.
Remarkable conservation, ready to join a private collection or to adorn a refined interior.

#JohnFlaxman #18thCDrawing #NeoclassicalArt #HomericWorks #Antiquities #HistoricalIllustration #WatermarkedPaper #VanDerLey #OriginalArt #WashDrawing #PrivateCollection #Odyssey #ArtAndLiterature Odyssey, the Divine Comedy of Dante and the tragedies of Aeschylus: in all 21 drawings. Back in London, he was elected a member of the Royal Academy (February 10, 1800)1, where he was then appointed professor of sculpture, and received important commissions, particularly in the field of funerary sculpture (monument of Lord Mansfield, London, Westminster Abbey). This refined interpreter of neoclassicism was admired and studied by the greatest artists of his time. The sirens The return to the line, a sublimated ideal stripped of all terrestrial sensuality, on the side of abstraction. It illustrates Homer's Songs and Dante's Divine Comedy. At the same time, he produced medallions and subjects for vases that he modeled for the Wedgwood factory. He eliminated in his illustrations of the Iliad and the Odyssey of 1793 the changing shades, the lights, and remained on the simple line outline on plain paper. The axis of composition is most elementary, and close to primitive art. There is in his work a desire for a clean slate, a return to a stripped down, anti-realistic style made with a simple outline, with a flat and linear technique, and in the sense that the works that we are offering you today are contradictory to his later works. His style is therefore close to Italian primitives like Cimabue. For his illustrations of Dante's Divine Comedy, the scenes are even more ethereal. He restores symbolic spaces like hell through abstract torments of intersecting lines. From his works emerges a desire to start from scratch. He became famous for his illustrations of Greek mythology.