WILLIAM MICHAEL HARNETT (1848-1892)

In 1880 William Michael Harnett arrived in Europe, where he increasingly focused his still lifes on musical and literary motifs. The present work showcases Dante’s Divine Comedy resting upon an Eastern carpet amidst a sea of other gentlemanly objects, including a bust of Dante himself. Set before a heraldic eagle emblem are a knight’s helmet, a bugle, sheet music for Franz Schubert’s Rosamund, and a text inscribed with the title Fantomes (referencing the title of Victor Hugo’s poem of 1829).

The combination of these specific historical references aligns with Harnett’s fascination with themes of courtly love and chivalry. For example, the sheet music likely refers to Rosamund, the concubine of Henry II of England, who was forced to end her own life due to the envy of the king’s wife. Dante’s Divine Comedy, in contrast, highlights Beatrice, the narrator’s divine love who guides him on a spiritual journey to salvation. Harnett may have intended “to contrast lust and spiritual love by juxtaposing…Rosamund, lewd and carnal, with Dante’s Beatrice, pure and godly…Harnett’s oeuvre celebrates the nobility of spirit attainable within an edifying framework of Christianity.” (J.L. Larson, “William Michael Harnett, 1848-1892,” Paintings at the High Museum of Art, 1994, New York, p. 106) Harnett’s careful selection of props communicates a pointed message that highlights his personal faith, as well as his overlying interest in reviving medieval chivalric, scholarly ideals.

The present work is related to Harnett’s nearly identical 1883 Still Life with a Bust of Dante in the collection of the High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Georgia.