Standing Roman
In the style of Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema British, born The Netherlands
Not on view
A noble Roman, perhaps the emperor Claudius, stands lost in thought as he fingers a rich curtain. Elements in the study--the archeologically accurate tripod table, the textile decorated with an image of "Amphitrite in Triumph"--can be found in paintings that Alma-Tadema made beween 1865 and 1871. Born in Friesland, the artist studied in Antwerp, worked in Brussels then moved to London in 1870 where he pioneered a distinctive mode of historical painting that mixed history and genre with evocative, detailed settings. The present drawing likely was made by a student or admirer, and prods the viewer to recall Claudius's sudden rise to power when the Praetorian Guard murdered his corrupt nephew Caligula (Alma-Tadema painted versions of that subject in 1867 and 1871).
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