PL ee ee 
best of all. 
$52 Account of the Life and Works of Canova. 
ter for whom it is intended. It is proba- 
ble that the antique Statue of a child 
holding a bird furnished the artist with 
the idea of this I *syche. It is the pro- 
perty of Count Maneiliat Venice. 
‘Canova, as we have observed, had ex- 
ecuted very few performances in halfre- 
lievo. Le resolved to attempt this spe- 
eres of comp@sition. Sixteen dasso relie- 
Vos in plaster, composed by him, were to 
be seen iit his work-shop 1 in 1803. ‘These 
were: Socrates saving the life of Aleibi- 
‘fades at the battle of Potidea; Socrates 
defending himself before the Areopagus ; 
Socrates in prison, takine leave of his fa- 
mily; Socrates going to ‘drink the hem- 
lock ; Socrates surrounded by his trrends 
after his death; Briséis taken from the 
tent of Achijles; the Death or Priam; a 
Procession of Proyan ladies; the young 
Pheacians dancing before Ulysses, at the 
eourt of Alcinots; the Return of Tele- 
machus te the paternal habitation; Ve- 
nus dancwig with the Graces, in the pre- 
sence of Mars; the Birth of Bacchus; 
the Death of Adonis; a School of Chil- 
dren; Charity distributing bread among 
the poor; the City of Padua represented 
under the firure of a female sitting. 
The last of these is the only one -that 
has been executed in marble; it deco- 
rates the council chamber of the senate 
of Padua. All the others are in plaster; 
and several of them embellish the palace 
et Prince Rezzonico.. The Scheol and 
Charity are placed in a school founded at 
the expence of that prince for the in- 
struction of the poor. The basso relievo 
of Alcibiades was presented by the artist 
tothe Academy of Lucca, of w hich he had 
beer receiveda memher. All these basso 
relievos are not of the same dimensions. 
The personification ef the city of Padua is 
half as large aslife. Most of them exiubit 
material faults in the manner in which 
the figures are grouped. The design is 
hot m narked with that ideal beauty w hich 
constitutes the charm of all the produc- 
tiens of art; the figures are destitute of 
grace and character, and in the form and 
disposition of the draperies we find no 
traces of the antique style. This last de- 
fect is particularly remarkable in the 
Procession of the Trojan Ladies. In the 
basso relievo of Charity the artist bas in~ 
troduced a figure which he seems to have 
intended to represent Poverty. It may 
he seen copied ona large scale, m the 
_ Mausoleum of Christina of Austria. The 
basso-relievo of the City of Padua is the 
The sitting figure is well 
grouped, its forms are well delineated and 
(Sept. fs 
the drapery is executed with considerable 
art. 
On examining these basso-relievosit is 
easily to perceive that their execution res 
quires a particular talent, with which an 
artist, though an excellent statuary; may 
not be endowed — It can scarcely be con= 
ceived that Canova could have fallen so 
far below himself. 
The Penitent Magdalen is one of the 
most periect of Canota’s performances: 
In this beautiful statue he has foliowed on- 
ly the inspiration of native genius. Mag- 
dalenis at prayer on her knees; her body, 
bowed by the feclings of sorrow and res 
pentance, is la Ve euishinely bent backward : 
ber arms rest on her thighs. She holdsa_ 
cross formed of two reeds tied together, 
and near her lies a skull. The greatest: 
part of her body is uucovered: a@ coarse 
garment fastened round the waist falls to 
the middle of the leg. Her hair flows 
over her shoulders. ‘Pears stream from 
her eyes, and sighs seem to issue from her 
half-dpencd lips, This posture an- 
nounces the anguish of pungent remorse. 
Never was the artist so fortuuate m the 
production of that languor and ‘softness 
which he efdeavours to give to forms, 
The eyes are so swoln with weeping that 
the eye lids are scarcely perceptible. ~ 
This statue belongs to M. Deuveyrier of 
Paris. 
The statue of Hebe produces a more | 
cheerful effect. She 1s dancing on a 
cloud, at the same time that she is pour- 
ing out nectar for the gods.. Phe twe 
vases are of metal gilt. This performance 
displays the cpening be auties of youth ; 
full cheeks, breasts} just beginning to sweil, 
a figure replete with galety and) inno- 
cence. The bedy is naked down to the 
waist. A light garment descending to 
the ancle does not conceal the graceful 
form of the thighs and legs. ‘The only 
part that can be found fault with in this 
charming statue is the drapery, in which 
the talent of the artist has always found a 
rock. It belongs to the Marquis Albrizzi 
at Venice. 
Canova has a style peculiar to himself 
in the arrangement of the hair. The als 
cients contented themselyes with brerely 
representing its directions, and, with the 
utmost simplicity imaginable, produced aut 
effect replete with grace. Canova, from 
the desire of being. more natural, 15 too 
minute; he forms the hair into two disz. — 
tinct por tions, one of which hangs in ring- 
lets, and the osher smooth. These twa. 
parts alternate as in the figures of Coy- 
reggio and Parmesano. The hair of Hebe 
