Nymphs Finding the Head of Orpheus

John William Waterhouse, 1849-1917

Oil on canvas

1900

"There is no more masterly work in the whole of Waterhouse's oeuvre," says Anthony Hobson, noting the compassion on the nymphs's faces, the hand raised in a "wholly natural gesture of dismay," as well as the "subdued" colours and all the effects of light and compositional skill (80-82). [Click on the image to enlarge it.]

Image credit (with thanks): jwwaterhouse.com. Text by Jacqueline Banerjee, and formatting by Banerjee and George P. Landow.