Lioness Tearing at the Chest of an Arab

Discussion

FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG

Delacroix’s Romantic fascination with the Oriental other and the savagery of nature comes to the fore in this delicate etching in which a turbaned Arab becomes a lioness’s prey. Pinioned by the lion’s mighty paws, the man no longer struggles but resigns himself to being rent asunder. The man’s eyes are in shadow while the animal’s are wide and fierce, a contrast underscoring the violence and the intimacy of the kill. Details such as the single slipper lying near the man’s foot and the cuffed short leggings emphasize his exotic origins.

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