Paris und Helena

David is remembered for stern Roman heroes and, soon after, the paintings of the Revolution, so this picture from 1788 sits oddly in his work. It was commissioned by the Comte d'Artois, the youngest brother of Louis XVI and a byword at court for pleasure and spending, and David gave him Paris and Helen, the Trojan prince and the woman whose abduction started a war, lounging in a luxurious chamber. Paris holds a lyre, Helen leans against him, everything is smooth skin, soft fabric and cool marble. It was finished the year before the Revolution began, and viewers then read it as a sly comment on the manners of the prince who ordered it, a beautiful couple whose love brings ruin. The columns behind them carry copies of real caryatids carved by Jean Goujon that still stand in the Louvre, the same building where the painting hangs today. Artois himself fled France in 1789 and only returned decades later, as king.