34. Semi-nude (Arachne) [cca.1909.]

This unusually imposed semi-nude by Robert Auer depicts Arachne, the weaver sung about in Ovid's Metamorphoses, who, in a weave competition with the goddess Athena, spun a story of the adventures of the gods. As Arachne's work was impeccable, Athena out of envy tore apart the weaving and transformed Arachne into a spider. The motif of the painting is concluded based on Robert Auer's large-scale piece from 1909 reproduced under the name Spider (Arachne) in the magazine Contemporary from 1910. A striking similarity of the two models, long brown hair adorned with pink rose flowers, as well as the bend of the upper body and the bent right arm in the forearm with a raised palm in a gesture of surprise or bewilderment is noticeable. The physiognomy of the faces reveals that they are the same model, while the characteristic intensity of the yellowish-brown palette confirms that it is a variant of the picture from 1909. The summary treatment of details suggests that this is a template, study, or earlier elaboration of the final composition, which is a common procedure in developing the final composition and will be adopted by the first generation of modern painters in Croatia as part of the Munich Academy's curriculum, where Auer was educated. In the depiction of the mythological heroine Arachne, Robert Auer presents a sensual heroine (who symbolically) catches men in a spider's web, embodying the femme fatale, one of the symbolic motifs. (P.V.)

Dimensions

width 38.5 cm, height 30 cm

Description

oil on canvas

Dating

cca.1909.

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