A coign of Vantage by Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema

 Hello to all the lovely creatures out there!

In today's post I'd like to introduce you to the painting "A coign of Vantage" by Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema!

A coign of Vantage - Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema - 1895

Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema was a renowned Dutch-born British painter who had a profound interest in Roman antiquity. He was one of the leading artists of the late 19th century and early 20th century, specializing in historical and classical subjects. Alma-Tadema's fascination with Roman antiquity was central to his artistic vision and played a significant role in shaping his career.

Starting from the beggining, the title of the painting has a very interesting one! The phrase comes from Shakespeares Macbeth, no jutty, frieze, Buttresss, nor coign of vantage, but this bird Hath made his pendent bed which was later popularized by Sir Walter Scott. The word coign, means a projecting corner or a cornerstone, and it is  variant of the coin from Old French meaning "wedge, corner, die" derived from the Latin cuneus "wedge".

When we ae looking at this painting we can see as the focal point of the painting a group of three women, elegantly dressed in vibrant gowns with lively colors: olive green, beige, white and pink. They are standing on a marbled terrace, over a thrilling vertiginous drop, an advantageous viewpoint, overlooking the sea below. Away in the distance you can distinguish a dim silhouette of an island, maybe the the island of Capri? The bay of Naples? The women stand against a marble railing and gaze down at the sea, where a luxuriously decked trireme is depicted arriving. Behind the women we can also observe a bronze sculpture of an animal (some kind of feline maybe) wreathed with vibrant yellow flowers.

The whole painting inspires a feeling of a lavishing life, especially focusing on all the decorative details that surround the painting. Alma-Tadema in general would visit famous Villas after inspecting the sites at Pompeii and Herculaneum, seeking inspiration for his paintings, and gathering material for use as props for his paintings. So it just makes sense to continue on this rich kind of style for this period of time. I do believe it very aesthetically pleasing in the eye to look in Alma-Tadema's paintings and I really wanted you too to experience this.

I hope you enjoyed reading and as always see you in a next post!

xoxoxo