Childe Hassam, The Lorelei - 1904 by Atelier Liesjes

About "Childe Hassam, The Lorelei - 1904"

by Atelier Liesjes

About the artwork

The Loreley or Lorelei is a 132 m high rock along the right bank of the Rhine near the German town of Sankt Goarshausen (between Koblenz and Wiesbaden) in the federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate, at Rhine kilometre 555. At this point the river makes a sharp bend, creating a strong current. The many ships that perished as a result of this form the food for legends and stories.
Legend has it that nymphs once lived around the Rhine. However, when people began to populate the banks, they were chased away. Only one nymph was left behind. She could not say goodbye to the Rhine and settled on the high rock from where she had a view of the entire river. With her beautiful, sad singing, her beauty and her long hair she managed to enchant the skippers, who lost sight of their ships and walked through the strong current on the rocks (the same narrative motif can be found in the legends of the Sirens of the Odyssey). Many lost their lives.
Here the maid sits naked on a rock on the side of the river. Her buttocks, back and part of a tit are bare and visible.
The image is sensual and erotic.
Frederick Childe Hassam (17 October 1859, Dorchester, now part of Boston - 27 August 1935, Long Island) was an American Impressionist painter. He made his name mainly with townscapes and coastal landscapes. The painter was a member of the influential artists' association the Ten American Painters.