GENERAL DESCRIPTION
For Eugène Delacroix, lithography lent itself to the spontaneity of line and painterly composition of romanticism. This is one of seventeen lithographs Delacroix made based on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's Faust, which he saw in London in 1827. His prints were published in Albert Stapfer's French translation the following year. Upon viewing the series, Goethe praised the illustrations as exceeding his own imagination. Delacroix's early attempt at lithography utilizes the medium's fullest range of light to dark—from the deepest blacks in the trees and undergrowth to the white of the mountain tops in the background.
Delacroix depicted Mephistopheles leading Faust up the Harz Mountains to reach the highest peak where they would witness Walpurgis Night. Still observed by many European communities, the event occurs on April 30, and according to folklore, the night marks a meeting of witches at this elevated location.
Adapted from
DMA unpublished material.
NOTES
Additional sources: O'Neill, John P., ed. Eugène Delacroix (1798-1863): Paintings, Drawings, and Prints from North American Collections, (New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art distributed by Harry N. Abrams, 1991), 194, cat. no. 87. [Available online through the MetPublications, http://www.metmuseum.org/research/metpublications/Eugene_Delacroix_1798_1863_Paintings_Drawings_and_Prints_from_North_American_Collections.]
TMS data, DMA electronic record, n.d.
Alternate title taken from the 1991 catalogue, Faust and Mephistopheles in the Mountains.
Foreign langauge title taken from the Met Museum (62.617.1)- Faust et Méphistophélès dans les Montaignes du Hartz.
Metropolitan online catalogue assigns the date 1825-1827. I did not change the date range in TMS.
Several sources use an alternate spelling of "Hartz"- but Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names confirms that "Harz" is the preferred spelling. I added this information into the remarks when adding the foreign language title.
Added original publication, 1991 catalogue, and the catalogue raissone numbers to bibliography.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Faust, translated by Albert Stapfer, Paris, 1828. Illustration appears between pages 114-115 and is the 14th of 17 total. Book available online through "Reading Europe," The European Library, http://www.theeuropeanlibrary.org/exhibition/readingeurope/content/snl/nbdig-41323.pdf
Delteil, no 71 (7th and final state)
Reformatted the exhibition history.
Note to final fun fact- I am not sure why he calls them engravings? I could not verify what source this came from, although I did not have time to check the published collections of Delcroix's letters.
Provenance:
Before 1963: Alfred and Juanita Bromberg, Dallas, TX
After 1963: Dallas Museum of Fine Art, Foundation for the Arts Collection, gift from the above [1] [2]
[1] The name of the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, founded in 1933, was changed to the Dallas Museum of Art in 1983.
[2] The Foundation for the Arts is a non-profit corporation created as a title-holding entity to serve the people of Dallas but to operate independently of the City. The Dallas Museum of Art (at its own cost) is responsible for the care, storage, insurance, conservation and maintenance of the collection, and agrees to maintain the highest museum standards in the management and handling of the Foundation’s collection. The title to all works of art purchased or otherwise acquired by the Foundation for the Arts is retained by the Foundation.
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Cultures
Geography
Place of origin: Paris (France): TGN: 7008038
Depicted location: Harz Mountains (Germany): TGN: 7167200
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Subject terms
illustration
tragedy
actors
literature
legend
mountain
hike
men
theater
tone
landscape
set (theater)
witches
sword
snake
performances
plays
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
AUDIO ASSETS
VIDEO ASSETS
IMAGE ASSETS
WEB RESOURCES
- Faust (1828)~See the rest of Delacroix's illustrations and read the entire edition of this book (in French) through "Reading Europe," The European Library.
ARCHIVAL RESOURCES
FUN FACTS
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's Faust (Part 1) was a play published in 1808 and based upon a German legend that was interpreted through numerous books, musical scores, and works of art.
- The tale of Faust and his pact with the Devil led to the short-hand term "Faustian," a word used to describe a person who chooses achievement in exchange for their moral principles.
- The passage from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s Faust (1808) illustrated in the lithograph reads: Mephistopheles: “Now grasp my doublet—we at last/ A central peak have reached, which shows,/ If round a wondering glance we cast,/ How in the mountain Mammon glows.”
- “You ask me what gave me the idea for my Faust engravings. . . . It was chiefly the performance of a dramatic opera on Faust which I saw in London which stimulated me to do something on the subject. The actor, Terry . . . was an accomplished Mephistopheles; his stoutness did not detract from his agility and Satanic character.” (Eugène Delacroix in a letter to art critic Philippe Burty, 1862)
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General Description
For Eugène Delacroix, lithography lent itself to the spontaneity of line and painterly composition of romanticism. This is one of seventeen lithographs Delacroix made based on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's Faust, which he saw in London in 1827. His prints were published in Albert Stapfer's French translation the following year. Upon viewing the series, Goethe praised the illustrations as exceeding his own imagination. Delacroix's early attempt at lithography utilizes the medium's fullest range of light to dark—from the deepest blacks in the trees and undergrowth to the white of the mountain tops in the background.
Delacroix depicted Mephistopheles leading Faust up the Harz Mountains to reach the highest peak where they would witness Walpurgis Night. Still observed by many European communities, the event occurs on April 30, and according to folklore, the night marks a meeting of witches at this elevated location.
Adapted from
DMA unpublished material.
Fun Facts
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's Faust (Part 1) was a play published in 1808 and based upon a German legend that was interpreted through numerous books, musical scores, and works of art.
- The tale of Faust and his pact with the Devil led to the short-hand term "Faustian," a word used to describe a person who chooses achievement in exchange for their moral principles.
- The passage from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s Faust (1808) illustrated in the lithograph reads: Mephistopheles: “Now grasp my doublet—we at last/ A central peak have reached, which shows,/ If round a wondering glance we cast,/ How in the mountain Mammon glows.”
- “You ask me what gave me the idea for my Faust engravings. . . . It was chiefly the performance of a dramatic opera on Faust which I saw in London which stimulated me to do something on the subject. The actor, Terry . . . was an accomplished Mephistopheles; his stoutness did not detract from his agility and Satanic character.” (Eugène Delacroix in a letter to art critic Philippe Burty, 1862)
Archival Resources
Web Resources
- Faust (1828)~See the rest of Delacroix's illustrations and read the entire edition of this book (in French) through "Reading Europe," The European Library.
Notes
Additional sources: O'Neill, John P., ed. Eugène Delacroix (1798-1863): Paintings, Drawings, and Prints from North American Collections, (New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art distributed by Harry N. Abrams, 1991), 194, cat. no. 87. [Available online through the MetPublications, http://www.metmuseum.org/research/metpublications/Eugene_Delacroix_1798_1863_Paintings_Drawings_and_Prints_from_North_American_Collections.]
TMS data, DMA electronic record, n.d.
Alternate title taken from the 1991 catalogue, Faust and Mephistopheles in the Mountains.
Foreign langauge title taken from the Met Museum (62.617.1)- Faust et Méphistophélès dans les Montaignes du Hartz.
Metropolitan online catalogue assigns the date 1825-1827. I did not change the date range in TMS.
Several sources use an alternate spelling of "Hartz"- but Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names confirms that "Harz" is the preferred spelling. I added this information into the remarks when adding the foreign language title.
Added original publication, 1991 catalogue, and the catalogue raissone numbers to bibliography.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Faust, translated by Albert Stapfer, Paris, 1828. Illustration appears between pages 114-115 and is the 14th of 17 total. Book available online through "Reading Europe," The European Library, http://www.theeuropeanlibrary.org/exhibition/readingeurope/content/snl/nbdig-41323.pdf
Delteil, no 71 (7th and final state)
Reformatted the exhibition history.
Note to final fun fact- I am not sure why he calls them engravings? I could not verify what source this came from, although I did not have time to check the published collections of Delcroix's letters.
Provenance:
Before 1963: Alfred and Juanita Bromberg, Dallas, TX
After 1963: Dallas Museum of Fine Art, Foundation for the Arts Collection, gift from the above [1] [2]
[1] The name of the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, founded in 1933, was changed to the Dallas Museum of Art in 1983.
[2] The Foundation for the Arts is a non-profit corporation created as a title-holding entity to serve the people of Dallas but to operate independently of the City. The Dallas Museum of Art (at its own cost) is responsible for the care, storage, insurance, conservation and maintenance of the collection, and agrees to maintain the highest museum standards in the management and handling of the Foundation’s collection. The title to all works of art purchased or otherwise acquired by the Foundation for the Arts is retained by the Foundation.
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Cultures
Geography
Place of origin: Paris (France): TGN: 7008038
Depicted location: Harz Mountains (Germany): TGN: 7167200
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Subject terms
illustration
tragedy
actors
literature
legend
mountain
hike
men
theater
tone
landscape
set (theater)
witches
sword
snake
performances
plays
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
AUDIO ASSETS
VIDEO ASSETS
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