Nymphs and Satyr [SEP] material used
Nymphs and Satyr
Nymphs and Satyr () is a painting, oil on canvas, created by artist William-Adolphe Bouguereau in 1873.
"Nymphs and Satyr" was exhibited in Paris at the 1873 Salon, which opened on 5 May, a year before the Impressionists mounted their first exhibition. One critic called it "the greatest painting of our generation". Purchased for 35,000 francs by the American art collector and speculator John Wolfe on 26 June, 1873, it was displayed in his mansion for many years alongside
, much like classical Greek satyrs. The first scientific name given to this ape was "Simia satyrus".
Relationships between satyrs and nymphs of this period are often portrayed as consensual. This trend is exemplified by the 1623 painting "Satyr and Nymph" by Gerard van Honthorst, which depicts a satisfied satyr and nymph lasciviously fondling each other after engaging in obviously consensual sex. Both are smiling and the nymph is showing her teeth, a sign commonly used by painters of the era to signify that the woman in question is