The Struggle Between the Devil and St Francis of Assisi for the Soul of Guido da Montefeltro, plate three from Darstellungen aus Dante's Hölle
1807/08
Medium
Etching on paper
Dimensions
40 × 31.6 cm (15 3/4 × 12 1/2 in.)
Classification
etching
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
144365
Art Historical Context
This dramatic etching by Joseph Anton Koch captures a pivotal moment from Dante’s Inferno, specifically the contested fate of Guido da Montefeltro. Plate three from the series Darstellungen aus Dante's Hölle (Representations from Dante’s Hell), created in 1807/08, depicts the devil and St. Francis of Assisi literally pulling at the soul of the cunning Ghibelline leader. Koch, an Austrian-born artist working in Rome during the height of Romantic interest in medieval literature, translated Dante’s vivid poetry into a visually intense confrontation that highlights themes of deception, repentance,...
About the Artist
Joseph Anton Koch · 1768–1839
Joseph Anton Koch, born on July 27, 1768, in the remote Tyrolean village of Elbigenalp, Austria, grew up tending his family's sheep amid the dramatic Alpine landscapes that would later define his art. At age 15, Bishop Umgelder recommended him for formal training, leading to studies at the Catholic seminary in Dillingen, with a court sculptor in Augsburg, and finally at the prestigious Hohe Karlss...