{"id":7041,"date":"2023-08-31T14:30:40","date_gmt":"2023-08-31T21:30:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/portlandartmuseum.org\/?page_id=7041"},"modified":"2023-08-31T14:30:40","modified_gmt":"2023-08-31T21:30:40","slug":"cleopatra-and-the-asp","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/portlandartmuseum.org\/the-poster-project\/cleopatra-and-the-asp\/","title":{"rendered":"Cleopatra and the Asp"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Michel
Michel Corneille, the elder (French, 1601\/1603\u20131664)\nCleopatra and the Asp, 1650\/1660\noil on canvas\n55 x 71 3\/8 inches\nGift of the Dr. Henry Victor Adix, Jr. Trust\n2001.13<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Download poster (English)<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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View Cleopatra and the Asp<\/em> in our permanent collection<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Michel Corneille was one of the founders of the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in France in 1648. Members of the Academy embraced the humanist ideals of the Italian Renaissance and considered historical narratives\u2014drawn from classical and biblical sources\u2014the most elevated subject matter for art. In keeping with these theories, Corneille used the story of Cleopatra\u2019s suicide to illustrate a moral lesson. Cleopatra ruled Egypt from 48 to 31 BCE. She formed powerful alliances\u2014political as well as romantic\u2014with the Roman rulers Julius Caesar and, following Caesar\u2019s death, Marc Anthony. When Cleopatra\u2019s and Marc Anthony\u2019s armies were ultimately defeated, Cleopatra preferred suicide to submission to the victorious Octavius. She chose a dramatic death\u2014clasping a poisonous asp to her breast\u2014that would make her the subject of artists through the ages. In Corneille\u2019s version, she is depicted as a noble leader at the moment of choice between dishonor and death.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Classical<\/strong>
Relating to ancient Greece and Rome, especially in the context of art, architecture, and literature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Renaissance<\/strong>
A revival or rebirth of cultural awareness and learning that took began in Italy in the fourteenth century and later spread throughout Europe, lasting through the sixteenth century. The period was characterized by a renewed interest in ancient Greek and Roman art and design and included an emphasis on human beings, their environment, science, and philosophy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Definitions adapted from ArtLex Art Dictionary<\/a> and MOMA Glossary of Art Terms<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Discussion and activities<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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  1. Before reading the title or explanatory paragraph, describe the figures in this painting. Who are they? What are their relationships to each other? What do their physical features\u2014clothing, coloring, postures\u2014tell you about their identities?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. What do you think is happening in this scene? What is the mood of the scene? How has the artist built drama and tension into the story? What will happen next?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Share anything you know about Cleopatra. Is this how you imagine her or have seen her portrayed in other artworks, films, or history books? What does Corneille\u2019s representation of Cleopatra reveal about seventeenth-century French ideals of beauty, virtue, and nobility?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Tableau activity for up to eight students: Position yourselves as a group to represent the various parts of the painting\u2014figures as well as inanimate objects. One student can act as a director, helping others position their bodies at low (close to floor), middle, and higher points. Freeze the moment. Discuss new insights into the work. Repeat the tableau for the moment in time immediately following what the painting depicts. Freeze that moment, then discuss your choices.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Michel Corneille was one of the founders of the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in France in 1648. Members of the Academy embraced the humanist ideals of the Italian […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"parent":6349,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_tec_requires_first_save":true,"pam_header_media":false,"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","transcript_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[0],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"_tribe_blocks_recurrence_rules":"","_tribe_blocks_recurrence_description":"","_tribe_blocks_recurrence_exclusions":"","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"pam_title_alignment":"left","pam_title_background":false,"footnotes":""},"pam_internal_theme":[185],"class_list":["post-7041","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","pam_internal_theme-pam"],"yoast_head":"\nCleopatra and the Asp - Portland Art Museum<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/portlandartmuseum.org\/the-poster-project\/cleopatra-and-the-asp\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Cleopatra and the Asp - Portland Art Museum\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Michel Corneille was one of the founders of the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in France in 1648. 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