Artwork Page for The Battle of the Penthesilea

Details / Information for The Battle of the Penthesilea

The Battle of the Penthesilea

1937

Raoul Ubac

(Belgian, 1910–1985)
Culture
Belgium, 20th century
Medium
gelatin silver print
Measurements
Image: 17 x 22.9 cm (6 11/16 x 9 in.); Paper: 18.2 x 24.1 cm (7 3/16 x 9 1/2 in.)
Credit Line
John L. Severance Fund 2007.154
Copyright
© 2013 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris
This artwork is known to be under copyright.
Location
Not on view
Print

Description

Ubac’s Penthesilea series (1937–39) is named for an 1808 play by poet Hermann von Kleist about the queen of the Amazons, the female warriors. This print, the finished work, is a photograph of a thick collage of cut-up photographs set on a black background and re-photographed using darkroom manipulations, including solarization. Bits of bodies, rope, and wood can be discerned but the end product is distant from reality, in keeping with its mythological origins. The chaotic composition and fragmented, disfigured bodies convey the frenzy and horrors of battle, a subject that would soon become all too real in Europe.

The Battle of the Penthesilea

1937

Raoul Ubac

(Belgian, 1910–1985)
Belgium, 20th century

See Also

Visually Similar by AI

    Contact Us

    The information about this object, including provenance, may not be currently accurate. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@clevelandart.org.

    To request more information about this object, study images, or bibliography, contact the Ingalls Library Reference Desk.

    All images and data available through Open Access can be downloaded for free. For images not available through Open Access, or any image with a color bar, request a digital file from Image Services.