Canova was the most successful and influential Neoclassical sculptor. During the 1780s he developed a new style marked by severity and idealistic purity, which led many of his contemporaries to prefer his ideal sculptures to such previously universally admired antique statues as the Medici Venus and the Farnese Hercules. He was also a popular portrait sculptor, often combining a classicizing format with a naturalistic presentation of features.

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Canova, Antonio

Biography

Notable Works

Artworks

Highlighted Works(2)

Bust of Paris

Perseus with the Head of Medusa

All Artworks

De drie gratiën

Study for a Tomb

Drawing after a Lithograph of a Recumbent Lion.

Study of a Nude Man in Profile turned to the Right

Venus Italica

Paris

The Vestal

Head of Medusa

Bust of Napoleon

Hercules about to hurl Lichas into the sea

The Graces and Venus Dancing before Mars

Venus and Cupid

Cupid and Psyche

Back view of Venus reclining accompanied by Cupid with a harp, from "Oeuvre de Canova: Recueil de Statues..."

Venus, back view, from "Oeuvre de Canova: Recueil de Statues..."

Paris leaning on tree stump, back view, from "Oeuvre de Canova: Recueil de Statues..."

Perseus with the head of Medusa, from "Oeuvre de Canova: Recueil de Statues..."

Venus, frontal view, from "Oeuvre de Canova: Recueil de Statues..."

Ajax, front view, from "Oeuvre de Canova: Recueil de Statues..."

Perseus Triumphant

The tomb of Pope Clement XIII Rezzonico in the Vatican

Impressions of intaglios after the statuary of Canova and Thorvaldsen