37 ANTONIO CANOVA
Italian (active in Rome),
1757-1822
Apollo Crowning Himself,
1781-1782
Marble
84.8 cm (33^3 /s in.)
Inscribed on the tree trunk:
ANT. CANOVA/VENET. FA CIEBJ
1781
95.SA.71Antonio Canova was considered the greatest Neoclassical sculptor from the 1790s
until his death, and he was the most famous European artist of his time. Despite his
reputation as a champion of Neoclassicism, Canova's earliest works, executed in Venice,
exhibit greater stylistic affinity to late Baroque and Rococo sculpture. This statuette of
Apollo was Canova's first Roman work in marble and marked a crucial turning point
in his career. Inspired by his first-hand study of ancient statues, the figure served as an
exemplar of the graceful style and idealized beauty that would become the sculptor's
trademarks for the next forty years.
While in Rome in 1781, Canova was asked by Don Abbondio Rezzonico to
produce this statuette of Apollo to be judged in competition with a figure of Minerva
(now lost) by the Roman sculptor Giuseppe Angiolini. Canova's sculpture, intended
to demonstrate his mastery of the Neoclassical style, is a study in classical pose and
proportion. The nude god's stance conforms to a canonical contrapposto in which
tensed limbs are opposite relaxed limbs and the body reposes in harmonious
equilibrium. The subject of the statuette derives from a famous story in Ovid's
Metamorphoses. Terrified by Apollo's lustful pursuit of her, the beautiful nymph
Daphne prayed to the goddess Diana, who responded by transforming Daphne
into a laurel tree to preserve her virginity. Apollo, crowning himself with laurel leaves,
lamented, "Although you cannot be my bride, you shall at least be my tree. My hair,
my lyre, my quiver shall always be entwined with you, O laurel" (1.557—559). Canova's
choice of this relatively calm, rarely depicted, moment in an otherwise action-filled
story reflects his desire to focus on a classically inspired nude—a task made easier by
the lack of movement or extreme emotion. It also illustrates the sculptor's lifelong
preference for poignant, introspective scenes. PAF102 EUROPEAN SCULPTURE