Loveless Disarming Himself

Description

The satirical target of this unruly lithograph is Jacques-Louis David’s final history painting, Mars Disarmed by Venus and the Three Graces (1824; Royal Museums of Fine Arts, Brussels). The god of war in David’s composition has been transformed into a weary French officer, the nubile goddesses into prostitutes pilfering his battle gear, and the classical, cloud-borne couch into a cheap brothel. As an additional insult, the sign at right offers “Bierre de Mars,” a spring brew rumored to inspire military volunteers.

Loveless Disarming Himself

Jacques Louis David

after 1824

Accession Number

40085

Medium

Lithograph in black on white wove paper

Dimensions

25.7 × 39.4 cm (10 1/8 × 15 9/16 in.)

Classification

lithograph

Museum

The Art Institute of Chicago

Chicago, United States

Credit Line

John H. Wrenn Memorial Collection