Myth and Folklore
In Greek myth, Icarus is the son of Daedalus, the architect who designed for King Minos of Crete the labyrinth to contain the half bull-half man Minotaur. When King Minos became suspicious that Daedalus and Icarus had revealed the labyrinth’s secrets, he imprisoned them.
To escape, Daedalus designed wings made of feathers, cloth, and beeswax. He warned his son against flying too high, because the sun would melt the wax, or flying too low, because the sea would saturate the material. Icarus ignored the advice and flew too close to the sun, which melted his wings, causing him to fall to his death in the sea. The story gave rise to the adage against “flying too close to the sun.”
Daedalus has been depicted frequently in Western art. Howard Oakley posted a three-part series on Icarus and Daedalus on his excellent art history page: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three. in Part One, Oakley points out major themes incorporated into various Icarus paintings over the centuries.
-
overambition leading to failure and disaster
-
father-son rivalry
-
the importance of known weaknesses in design and manufacture
-
the importance of thorough planning and preparation
Oakley’s articles include Icarus paintings by Joos de Momper (II), Andrea Sacchi, Jacob Peter Gowy, Peter Brueghel the Elder, Peter Paul Reubens, Anthony Van Dyck, Frederick Leighton, and others.
"Icarus, Suite Op. 369"
By Jose Luis Muñoz Luque (graphite and silverleaf on wood, c. 57.5” x 43.3”)
"Farewell the Trumpets"
By Sean Layh (oil on board, c. 45” x 65”, 2023)
Contemporary Spanish artist Jose Luis Muñoz Luque used graphite and silverleaf to portray Icarus as he is about to launch his flight.
Muñoz received a degree in Fine Arts from the University of Seville in 1993, and has since had numerous solo shows, been featured in several publications, and won various prizes.
Muñoz is influenced by Symbolism and Renaissance painting, while sometimes incorporating images from comics and movies, bringing his contemporary vision to universal symbols from literature and classical mythology. Composition is important to Muñoz, beginning with a detailed drawing, then gradually adding color in tempera, acrylic, or oil. His figures are often presented in front of flat backgrounds with elements in graphite, goldleaf, or silverleaf.
In the featured “Farewell the Trumpets,” Australian artist Sean Layh shows the deadly result of Icarus’ hubris. The painting won an award of Exceptional Merit in the Portrait Society of America’s 25th International Competition (2023).
Layh was inspired by Jan Morris’ book about the decline of the British Empire, Farewell the Trumpets, and by Chantal Delsol’s philosophical interpretation of modern Western man, Icarus Fallen. The supine, dormant Icarus in his painting is reminiscent of Alfred Schwarzschild’s Icarus Fallen (1920).
After three exhibitions of his digital art, Layh returned in 2017 to creating large-scale oil paintings, and in 2021 became a full-time artist. He sometimes works in dry media, such as charcoal, conte, and pastel. His paintings have themes of searching, transition, bereavement, and survival. His work has been exhibited at Arcadia Contemporary in New York City and the European Museum of Modern Art (MEAM) in Barcelona.
Layh is represented by Beinart Gallery in Melbourne. His in-depth interview on artist Jeff Hein’s “The Undraped Artist” is available on Apple podcasts or YouTube.
Other depictions of Icarus in contemporary art include:
Pierre Barbrel, Icare—Fight, Flight, Freeze, digital photography, 2016
Alexandra Becker-Black, Icarus, watercolor, 2012
Michael Bergt, Icarus, egg tempera and gold leaf on panel, 2016
Roberto Ferri, Icaro, oil, 2006
David Ligare, Falling Man (Icarus), oil on canvas, 2015
Arantzazu Martinez, The Fall of the Ego, oil, on linen, 2011
Gabriel Picart, The Flight of Icarus, oil and mixed media on panel, 2004
Leo Plaw, Icarus in Training, 2017
Ximena Rendon, Icarus, oil on aluminum panel, 2020
"Yōkai"
By Kaneko Tomiyuki (mineral pigments, Japanese ink, transparent watercolor, acrylic, and foil pen on Japanese paper, 2017)
The featured mixed media piece by Mexican-American artist David Fremard Romero depicts the “Myth of Quetzalcoatl,” the “Feathered Serpent” prominent in ancient Mesoamerican cultures. The Temple of Quetzalcoatl was in Teotihuacán, the most populous and important city in pre-Aztec Mesoamerica. Romero’s style combines Mesoamerican, Baroque, and contemporary art influences into works of dynamic design and vivid colors.
"Mito de Quetzalcoatl"
By David Gremard Romero (fabric and acrylic, c. 53” x 41”, 2018)
The mixed media piece by Kaneko Tomiyuki depicts a Yōkai, a supernatural being or spirit from Japanese folklore. Since his childhood, artist Kaneko Tomiyuki has been interested in Japanese folklore and spirit world. He studied traditional Japanese style painting at the Tohoku University of Art and Design. The school is in the home prefecture of the “Legends of Tono,” a book published in 1910 by Kunio Yanagita, a founder of Japanese folklore studies. Tomiyuki’s artwork visualizes his understanding of the interaction of the spirit world with human’s unconscious emotional world.
"Pandora"
By Angel Ramiro Sanchez (oil on canvas, 51” x 27”, 2001)
Zeus, the head Greek god, was infuriated that Prometheus had stolen fire (symbolizing knowledge and reason) from the gods and given it to humans as the basis for technology and science. To counter those human benefits, Zeus commissioned Hephaestus, the god of fire and blacksmiths, to mold the first mortal woman, Pandora. He created her both beautiful and cunning.
The other gods bestowed Pandora with gifts—practical, ornamental, or beguiling, including a jar filled with worldly evils and diseases. When Pandora married Prometheus’ brother, Epimetheus, her curiosity compelled her to open the jar lid, inadvertently allowing the evils and diseases to escape. She quickly replaced the lid but only Hope remained in the jar, the last attribute to die in humans.
[Note: A 16th-century mistranslation or confusion with Psyche’s box resulted in Pandora’s jar becoming known as a box.]
Pandora has been the subject of the visual arts since ancient times. Memorable depictions of her from the late-19th century, for example, include those by Alexandre Cabanel (1873), William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1890), and John William Waterhouse (1896).
The version of Pandora featured here is by contemporary painter Angel Ramiro Sanchez (2001). In his youth, Sanchez studied with realist painters in his native Venezuela. He continued his artistic education in Florence, Italy, where he graduated Magna Cum Laude (1997) from the Accademia di Belle Arti. He also earned a degree in Painting from the Florence Academy of Art, where he became a teacher and is now Director of the Advanced Painting Program.
For accuracy of a model’s physical appearance and psychological state, Sanchez paints only from life. His work in part of numerous private and public collections in Europe, South America, and the United States. He is represented by Grenning Gallery in Sag Harbor, New York, Jack Meier Gallery in Houston, Texas, and Scriba Gallery in Venice, Italy.
"Phaethon"
By Conor Walton (oil on linen, 36” x 30” 2013)
Phaethon (Greek for “Shining” or “Radiant”) was the son of Helios, the Greek sun god. When friends ridiculed the idea Phaeton was son of a god, the distraught boy demanded proof from Helios (or Apollo in later versions) who swore it was the truth and offered to fulfill one wish. Phaethon was granted his request to drive the chariot that directs the sun’s daily path across the sky. However, the boy was unable to control the horses and the chariot plummeted toward earth. To prevent the earth’s destruction by fire, Zeus hurled a thunderbolt, killing Phaethon, who fell into the Eridanos River. After his death, Phaethon was transformed into a star.
In the featured painting of Phaethon, artist Conor Walton (2013) draws a parallel with the myth, rather than replicating it. By substituting a contemporary rocket launch for the ancient chariot, the image raises questions about the human capacity to control the dangers of technology. The artist remarks that in his painting, “a glorious, radiant image is implanted with the germ of an epic tragedy.”
A native of Ireland, Walton studied at the National College of Art and Design in Dublin and at the Charles H. Cecil Studios in Florence, Italy. He later received a master’s degree, with a mark of Distinction, in Art History and Theory from the University of Essex and has lectured at various institutions.
Walton has participated in several museum exhibitions and had 18 solo shows in Europe and the United States. He has won numerous awards, such as the Ismail Lulani International Award (2019), ModPortrait (2017), Art Renewal Center Salon’s Still Life award (2014-15), and Portrait Ireland (2005), among others. His artwork also appears on book covers and postage stamps. Walton is represented by Sol Art in Ireland.
"The Fairy Queen"
By Annie Stegg (oil on panel, 14” x 11”, 2013)
Inspired by 18th century Rococo artists, Annie Stegg Gerard paints ethereally beautiful figures and animals from folklore, mythology, fantasy, and nature. Her work entices the viewer into an enchanted realm. She is represented by Haven Gallery. In 2013, she was interviewed by her husband and fellow artist, Justin Gerard, for the art website “Muddy Colors.”
Derived from Irish, Scottish, and English folklore, the fairy queen has appeared in the Arthurian legends as well as the literary works of Shakespeare, Edmund Spenser, J. M. Barrie, and many other writers over the centuries. She is beautifully portrayed here by painter Annie Stegg.
"Achilles and the Body of Patroclus"
by David Ligare (Oil on Canvas, 60' x 78', 1986)
In Iliad, Homer’s great epic poem about the Trojan War, Achilles is a Greek warrior whose hubris (extreme pride or arrogance) leads to suffering and death: “the wrath of Achilles.” Iliad’s climactic scene depicts Achilles slaying Hector in revenge for the Trojan hero’s previous killing of Patroclus, the beloved of Achilles.
This late-20th century painting by David Ligare features Achilles and other young Greek men moving the corpse of Patroclus. Ligare is a highly skilled artist working in the neo-classical tradition.
"Theseus and the Minotaur"
by Paul Reid (oil on canvas, c. 41 x 51 inches, 2009)
Scottish artist Paul Reid is an accomplished painter with work in prestigious collections, including of Prince Charles, J. K. Rowling, The Royal Scottish Academy, the University of Dundee Museum, and the Perth Museum. Reid is justly renowned for his mythological pieces.
The featured painting depicts the confrontation between the Greek hero Theseus and Minotaur, the Cretan monster with a bull’s head on a man’s body. Every nine years, Minotaur demanded and received seven young men and seven young women of Athens to be sacrificed.
Theseus, the son of Athenian King Aegeus, volunteered to be one of those destined to be killed, but, instead, slew the Minotaur. Theseus escaped aided by Ariadne, the daughter of Cretan king Minos, who had given the hero a ball of yarn to unravel in the monster’s labyrinth and easily retrace his steps. Despite Theseus’ triumph, on his return voyage he forgets to signal success to Aegeus. Assuming his son is dead, the distraught king throws himself into the sea, thereafter, named in his honor: the Aegean.