View allAll Photos Tagged MuseofTragedy
Heliconian Butterflies are the most speciose of butterflies. There are lots of sorts with widely varying markings. The first painting perhaps of one - from Surinam - was done by famous botanist and entomologist, the intrepid Maria Sibylla Merian (1647-1717). She'd travelled to and worked in Surinam 1699-1701, and published her naturalist findings in 1705. The painted leaf now in St Petersburg features a Heliconius, clearly a Melpomene (and not an Erato hydara, as has been claimed); Merian had sharp eyes. Heliconius melpomene melpomene is more prevalent in Surinam, ranging from the north of Colombia and Venezuela and then in a strip down along the coast from Guyana to the mouth of the Amazon from whence inland again.
In the inset photo you can see - if you're at all interested in these subtleties - how to distinguish the two very much alike kinds: Melpomene has those three tiny red spots where the underwing joins the thorax. For the rest Melpomene and Erato look the same to any predator and both are distasteful, too.
So, what's this about mimicry as a defense strategy whereby a less noxious kind mimics a more distasteful one for its own protection? Why would two equally disagreeable species or subspecies mimic each other? The mathematical answer was given by Johann Friederich Theodor 'Fritz' Müller (1821-1897). He showed mathematically that this double mimicry serves for quicker 'predator education', thus ensuring less loss of life for both species of Butterfly. Incidentally, this Müllerian Mimicry is one of the first instances in biology of using an explanatory mathematical model.
PS Many entomological authors say that 'Melpomene' is for the Greek Muse of Tragedy. It seems to me equally possible that it's for another meaning of the same word, namely: Dance. If you watch these colorful Butterflies: no Tragedy, but all Dancing in the Air.
Given what occurred in 1929, “Tragic New Year” is a far better title. The stock market crashed on Black Monday, October 28, 1929, accelerating a global economic collapse that led to the Great Depression.
One of the most recognizable illustrations of J. C. Leyendecker’s storied career as a commercial artist is the New Year’s Baby he designed for the cover of “The Saturday Evening Post” at the beginning of each year. His first baby was delivered for the December 29, 1906 issue of the Post, and the series continued uninterrupted until 1943, each one insightfully capturing the spirit of the times.
The poet Virgil and the two muses Calliope – epic poetry and eloquence muse, and Polymnia – the pantomime muse (Melpomene, Muse of tragedy?)Virgil holding a copy of his Aeneid Early third century AD. Hadrumeturn (Sousse). The so-called House of Virgil
Figlia di Zeus e Mnemosine, Melpomene era nella mitologia greca la Musa del Canto, dell'Armonia Musicale e della Tragedia.
David Cerulli, 1997, near Zoellner Arts Center, Lehigh University, South Side, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, USA, sculpture
Portraits of Domenica Morghen and Maddalena Volpato as Muses of Tragedy and Comedy, 1791
Oil on canvas
Kauffman painted her two friends Domenica and Maddalena as the muses of tragedy and comedy respectively. The proximity of the sitters alludes to a sisterly relationship between the forms of drama that they represent. Domenica sits with the mask of Melpomene, muse of tragedy, on her lap while her sister-in-law Maddalena holds a shepherd’s crook, one of the symbols used to represent Thalia, the muse of comedy.*
From the exhibition
by Kauffman, unless otherwise stated
Angelica Kauffman
(March - June 2024)
Angelica Kauffman was one of the most celebrated artists of the late eighteenth century, described by a contemporary as “the most cultivated woman in Europe”.
Born in 1741 in Chur, Switzerland, she trained and worked in Italy before moving to London in 1766. Two years later, she was one of only two women artists to be a Founding Member of the Royal Academy of Arts. In 1782 Kauffman settled in Rome where her famous studio attracted visitors from across Europe.
In both England and Italy, Kauffman painted the most influential figures of her day and reinvigorated the genre of history painting with her focus on female protagonists.
Throughout her career, Kauffman painted a great number of self-portraits and self referential images. Through these works, she explored her identity as an artist and shaped her own reputation”.
[*Royal Academy]
Taken at the Royal Academy
The Haunted Undertaker, Part I: I let out a loud yelp, stumbling backwards. I'm sprayed with coffee grounds and water as my back slams into the island cabinet. Propped up against my coffee machine is my ancient Greek tragic mask. It stares back at me with its large void eyes and gaping mouth twisted into a permanent frown.
Melpomene (M.N. Kee)
#funeral #Gothic #Haunted #Melpomene #MuseofTragedy #Paranormal #Sins&Tragedies#greekmythology #greece #mythology #greek #greekmyth #art #travel #greekgoddesses #theme #greekmyths #bhfyp #writing #writersofinstagram #writer #love #writingcommunity #writerscommunity #words #art #writers #writersofig #reading #life #wordporn #books #write #amwriting #lovequotes #author www.inthepantheon.com/?p=23791
The Haunted Undertaker, Part II: “I hope you have found your passage across the Styx, Mr. Steffens. If not, well...” I trail off, placing drachma in his palm. “Tell that greedy Charon I’ll pay your fare.” As my fingers graze his skin, I’m suddenly blinded by a flash of light as a vision takes over…
Melpomene (M.N. Kee)
#funeral #Gothic #Haunted #Melpomene #MuseofTragedy #Paranormal #Sins&Tragedies#greekmythology #greece #mythology #greek #greekmyth #art #travel #greekgoddesses #theme #greekmyths #bhfyp #writing #writersofinstagram #writer #love #writingcommunity #writerscommunity #words #art #writers #writersofig #reading #life #wordporn #books #write #amwriting #lovequotes #author www.inthepantheon.com/haunted-undertaker-partii/tragedy/m...
Portraits of Domenica Morghen and Maddalena Volpato as Muses of Tragedy and Comedy, 1791
Oil on canvas
Kauffman painted her two friends Domenica and Maddalena as the muses of tragedy and comedy respectively. The proximity of the sitters alludes to a sisterly relationship between the forms of drama that they represent. Domenica sits with the mask of Melpomene, muse of tragedy, on her lap while her sister-in-law Maddalena holds a shepherd’s crook, one of the symbols used to represent Thalia, the muse of comedy.*
From the exhibition
by Kauffman, unless otherwise stated
Angelica Kauffman
(March - June 2024)
Angelica Kauffman was one of the most celebrated artists of the late eighteenth century, described by a contemporary as “the most cultivated woman in Europe”.
Born in 1741 in Chur, Switzerland, she trained and worked in Italy before moving to London in 1766. Two years later, she was one of only two women artists to be a Founding Member of the Royal Academy of Arts. In 1782 Kauffman settled in Rome where her famous studio attracted visitors from across Europe.
In both England and Italy, Kauffman painted the most influential figures of her day and reinvigorated the genre of history painting with her focus on female protagonists.
Throughout her career, Kauffman painted a great number of self-portraits and self referential images. Through these works, she explored her identity as an artist and shaped her own reputation”.
[*Royal Academy]
Taken at the Royal Academy
Portraits of Domenica Morghen and Maddalena Volpato as Muses of Tragedy and Comedy, 1791
Oil on canvas
Kauffman painted her two friends Domenica and Maddalena as the muses of tragedy and comedy respectively. The proximity of the sitters alludes to a sisterly relationship between the forms of drama that they represent. Domenica sits with the mask of Melpomene, muse of tragedy, on her lap while her sister-in-law Maddalena holds a shepherd’s crook, one of the symbols used to represent Thalia, the muse of comedy.*
From the exhibition
by Kauffman, unless otherwise stated
Angelica Kauffman
(March - June 2024)
Angelica Kauffman was one of the most celebrated artists of the late eighteenth century, described by a contemporary as “the most cultivated woman in Europe”.
Born in 1741 in Chur, Switzerland, she trained and worked in Italy before moving to London in 1766. Two years later, she was one of only two women artists to be a Founding Member of the Royal Academy of Arts. In 1782 Kauffman settled in Rome where her famous studio attracted visitors from across Europe.
In both England and Italy, Kauffman painted the most influential figures of her day and reinvigorated the genre of history painting with her focus on female protagonists.
Throughout her career, Kauffman painted a great number of self-portraits and self referential images. Through these works, she explored her identity as an artist and shaped her own reputation”.
[*Royal Academy]
Taken at the Royal Academy