Watch the story
Watch the first minute here. The full film, with the painter, the history and a close reading of the details, is in Hear Art.
The rest of the story is in Hear Art
Unlock all 119 films with one purchase. Ten paintings are free. No subscription.
Free preview · first minute
Look closer
Choose a detail to move in close. The film reads every one of them aloud.
Chapter 1 of 6
Painted in 1822, this was the picture that announced Eugène Delacroix to the world — he was just twenty-three. It shows a scene from Dante's Inferno: the poet, guided by Virgil, crossing the dark marsh that rings the burning city of the dead. Everything trembles with Romantic energy — storm-light, churning water, bodies in torment.
After the cool order of earlier French painting, this hit like thunder.
Where to see it
Paris
Room 700 · Salle Mollien · Level 1 · Denon wing
The Hear Art 3D museum guide walks you to it.
Public domain image via Wikimedia Commons.
119 masterpieces, each with its own film, in eight languages. Ten are free; one purchase unlocks the rest. No subscription.
