Modernity
1883
Medium
Drypoint on cream wove paper
Dimensions
Image: 18.9 × 12.9 cm (7 1/2 × 5 1/8 in.); Plate: 20 × 13.8 cm (7 7/8 × 5 7/16 in.); Sheet, folded: 44.4 × 34.8 cm (17 1/2 × 13 3/4 in.)
Classification
drypoint
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
51489
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
The Symbolist artist Félicien Rops created idiosyncratic artworks alongside Gustave Moreau and the writers Charles Baudelaire and Oscar Wilde. In Modernity, a smirking female allegory for Modernism holds a platter bearing the severed head of the Academy. Her pose clearly refers to the story of Salomé, which would have been familiar to most educated viewers of the time. Her attire represents the latest Parisian style. Other examples of highly fashionable hats are worn by figures in the print Hodg...
Art Historical Context
Félicien Rops' *Modernity* (1883) is a striking drypoint print that captures the artist's provocative gaze on fin-de-siècle society. Created on cream wove paper, intimate work measures just 18.9 × 12.9 cm for the image, inviting close contemplation in the Art Institute of Chicago's Prints and Drawings. Rops, a artist (1833–1898) renowned for his Symbolist and Decadent sensibilities, often infused his art with satire, eroticism, and a critique of modern vices, blending the macabre with the mundane. Drypoint technique shines here: Rops scratched directly into the copper plate with a sharp needle, raising a soft burr that yields rich, velvety lines and textured depth—ideal for conveying subtle shadows and emotional intensity. Unlike smoother etching, drypoint's directness mirrors Rops' spontaneous, unflinching style, making each impression unique as the burr wears down. As a commentary on "Modernity," the print reflects late 19th-century anxieties about industrialization, urban decadence, and shifting morals amid Europe's cultural upheavals. Housed in a folded sheet of 44.4 × 34.8 cm, it exemplifies how prints democratized bold art, challenging viewers to confront the era's underbelly with Rops' signature wit and darkness. A gem for those exploring Symbolism's shadowy edges!
About the Artist
Félicien Rops · 1833–1898
Félicien Rops, born Félicien Victor Joseph Rops on July 7, 1833, in Namur, Belgium, to a prosperous textile manufacturing family, displayed prodigious artistic talent from youth. The only child of Nicholas Rops and Sophie Maubile, he received private tutoring until age ten, followed by education at a Jesuit school in Namur (1843–1848), the Athénée Royal de Namur, and the Academy of Fine Arts there...