"Clio may be the most austere and chaste of the Muses, but she has been known to come down informally from Mount Helicon in a mood so raffish that there are those who claim to have seen her with her slip showing." ~Willis Thornton, Fable, Fact and History
I am always intrigued by the paintings of Clio-(my personal Muse of Choice)- this one by Vermeer- very much so.
what is the story of this painting?
It's all explained here-
your Muse of Choice?
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Fascinating. And of course Clio would be your muse - with your "eye on the past".
ReplyDeleteYes! and isn't that heavy needlework tapestry beautiful as a curtain to the side. You can see the textured stitching perfectly- but not overstated -what a genius Vermeer. pgt
ReplyDeleteWonderful Gaye thankyou
ReplyDeleteoff to dream about it fay xx
Vermeer--lovely, and our household muse is Thalia (humor)one we toyed with naming our youngest.
ReplyDeleteMakes sense love Vemeer am so getting that book if it is available...You are fantastic Patricia.
ReplyDeleteI love that he used Clio. So interesting.
ReplyDeleteThe colors are what catch my eye--gorgeous, rich and even of the moment. Thanks for awaking my eye to see afresh.
ReplyDeleteLOVE this post......beyond...... I love that you selected Clio....divine. Your follower led me to Thalia.........
ReplyDeleteThalia (muse)..I pick her.........they are both sublime.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Muse of comedy and idyllic poetry,. "the joyous, the flourishing",. In this context, her name means “flourishing,” because the praises in her songs flourish through time. She was the daughter of Zeus and Mnemosyne,
She was portrayed as a young woman with a joyous air, crowned with ivy, wearing boots and holding a comic mask in her hand. Many of her statues also hold a bugle, a trumpet (both used to support the actors' voices in ancient comedy), a shepherd’s staff, or a wreath of ivy"
YIKES!! Without you, I never would have heard of her!
Thank you so much for your blog. I can only imagine the time and effort it takes....so so obviously love it....you are so good
Thank you!!!!
oh ps. I knew there was some reason I always want to wear a "festivity crown"...or wreath., or crown of flowers...on my head.
ReplyDeletethank you for supplying the answer!!
Penelope
Gaye, I'm glad to know the "history" behind this painting. I think that Vermeer's understanding of light and shadow is unparalleled, and you may know that many people believe that he might have used some form of special lens device. Maybe not. Either way, he was a genius.
ReplyDeleteCaliope is my muse these days. Back in high school when I studied Classical Greek (eek!) we had to memorize all the muses and their domains, but I've forgotten so many of them. A librarian friend recently showed me a very charmingly illustrated book of Greek Mythology for kids by D'Auliers and it had a delightful drawing of all the Muses gracefully standing about.
ReplyDeleteWhat I love about the old master is the symbolism behind his paintings. His demonstration of perspective is simply brilliant … Great post!
ReplyDeleteYou are Clio and how interesting the idea is to adopt a Muse. This one suits you to perfection. AW
ReplyDeletehmmm....
ReplyDeletemy muse of choice? Pretty much: LIttle Augury. Covers it. :)
I agree with Victoria! Or, maybe Sargent's Rosina? I too love Vermeer and Clio is a perfect choice.
ReplyDeleteKerry-Thalia is a perfect choice.
ReplyDeletePenelope- & for you too. Thalia it is and the festivity crown-A Must Have!
VT, Barbara- thank you-I suggest looking to the Greeks for divine muses-the earthbound may disappoint!
ReplyDeletetownhouse- I am going to look up that painting-thanks.