The Fall of Man - Susan Wallington

A conglomeration of the many different characters that Dante met along his journey through the nine circles of hell, this piece is the essence of the despair and agony of man. Over 200 human figures are captured in an eternal state of torment, each with their own sins that they must atone for. The dimensionality of this piece is a key factor, as the figures appear to emerge forth from the gates of Hell, reaching out towards redemption and the real world beyond the gates that trap them.

Due to his sins, Ugolino was imprisoned in ice in the second layer of hell by Dante and condemned to starvation, along with four children – his two sons, and two grandsons. The statue depicts his children clinging to him, expressions of desperation and agony capture on their faces as they beg him to eat them. In contrast, Ugolino’s face is one of frustration and a struggle for control as he yields to their temptations. The almost exaggerated curvature and flexibility of their young bodies as they seem to wrap around Ugolino provides the statue with an illusion of movement. The scene captured is one of raw human nature, depicting the struggle between one’s morality and the ever present lure of our own primal instinct.

What’s immediately noticeable about this piece is how the depiction of Antaeus differs from the rest of the male figures in this gallery. While most of the other works display the male figure in a state of submission, Antaeus’ body is captured in the motion of setting down Dante and Virgil. Antaeus was the son of the Greek gods Poseidon and Gaia, and his muscular figure is incredibly detailed and dominates the foreground of the piece; this emphasizes both his masculinity and domineering character, as well as his importance in this scene.

Bouguereau’s painting here depicts two men – Cappochio and Gianni Schicchi – in a violent struggle while Dante, Virgil, and demonic figures look on. The figures of Cappochio and Schicchi are fully nude and both have very toned musculature; their posture is heavily exaggerated – almost to the point of distortion - and held at an almost painful angle, an emphasis on the movement of both bodies and the desperate fight for dominance, driven by raw emotion. While Schicchi is presented as a very aggressive, powerful figure – a common depiction of men in historical works – Cappochio’s expression is one of pain and agony, and his limp posture, held up by the vice grip that Schicchi has on his abdomen, is a clear indicator of his suffering. Light falls heavily on these two figures, allowing them to stand out from the rest of characters and dominate the foreground of the piece; interestingly, the figures in the background to the right almost go unnoticed due to Bouguereau’s use of lighting to draw such heavy focus to Cappochio and Schicchi. While this scene is set in the eighth circle of Hell, the palette is actually very natural; the skin color and how light and shadow plays against the figures is how it would appear in the real world, a reminder that these two men are only human, brought down to this moment of aggression by their desire to dominate.

In Inferno, Geryon is known as a creature of fraud and, ironically, is described as having an honest face – along with a very monstrous appearance with a scaled, reptilian-like body, paws, and even the tail of a scorpion. Dante and Virgil are shown riding on the back of Geryon, above the sinners being punished in the circles of hell below. Through the use of space, figure placement, and proportion, Koch displays the hierarchy of Dante and Virgil – virtuous human men – over the crowd below, helpless nude figures running in terror from the demon in the lower right who appears to be torturing them for the sins they have committed.

What immediately draws the viewer's eye in this piece is Dante, clad in his trademark red clothing and placed in the center of the work, setting him apart. He is surrounded by characters from his own Divine Comedy, who are all presented in a dull, brown color; however, the use of lighting is crucial in separating the divine figures from those of the damned. In the upper left, a holy light is depicted and surrounding it are brightly lit figures who appear to be primarily women and angels, clothed, some clasping their hands in prayer. The right half of the piece is overflowing with nude figures - the souls of those trapped in the circles of Hell – who are desperately reaching towards the light, some fighting and attacking others as they strive for their desired salvation. The placement of these figures is also noteworthy, as it creates the appearance that they are physically rising from Hell below, upward towards the real world and Heaven.

Once again, figure placement, and the use of space and proportion, factor into this piece. We see Dante and Virgil sadly overlooking the souls of the damned below in the eighth circle, placed higher above them to symbolize their humanity among the sinners of Hell. This placement, however, is simultaneously juxtaposed by the scale of Dante, Virgil, and the souls below in comparison to the surrounding environment – a reminder that they are all mere mortals in the vast circles of Hell. Many of these forlorn figures appear to merge into the environment, becoming parts of the pillar seen to the left. They all wear expressions immense sadness and agony, and this emotion noticeably begins to fade as they become one with the hellish landscape, accepting their eternal damnation.

Contradictory to many of the other depictions of the male figure throughout the Divine Comedy, the man in this statue is eternally lost in thought, musing, with a lack of emotion. The figure is also the centerpiece of Musée Rodin’s “Gates of Hell”, positioned towards the top and overlooking the scene of agony below him. In this context, the Thinker is caught between two worlds – that of the eternally damned below him, and of the real world as a free thinking spirit. Despite his nudity, there is no shame or feeling of exposure depicted in his posture; he is a man transfixed with his own thoughts, and ever aware of his own mortality.

An almost ironic piece in comparison to the hellish scenes depicted in Inferno, “Eternal Springtime” captures two lovers in a tender moment of intimacy. Inspired by the sin of adultery committed by Paolo and Francesca in the poem, the sculpture is incredibly sensual and shameless; both the male and female figure are nude, the two entwined and completely focused on one another. The nudity emphasizes lust and human sexuality, their bodies curved towards each other, and noticeably there is no movement by either figure to cover themselves.

One of the more violent scenes from Inferno, this commissioned piece depicts Dante’s meeting with Muhammad and his son, Ali, in the eighth circle of Hell. Muhammad is shown here mutilated, with his entrails hanging from his cleaved torso; many other figures in this scene are bleeding and missing their limbs – the figure in the background has been cut in half, his legs continuing to walk even without the upper half of his body -, having been attacked by the devil in the right of the image. Not only Dante, but the other condemned souls carry expressions of agony and horror at this torturous act of aggression. Again, we see the use of figure placement to assert dominance over others which, in this piece, is the devil, proudly brandishing his sword above his head, ready to strike.