Artwork

The Potuans are Surprised to see Niels Klim Genuflect in front of the Wise Prince.

The Potuans are Surprised to see Niels Klim Genuflect in front of the Wise Prince. is an oil painting by the Neoclassicist artist Nicolai Abildgaard. It dates from 1793 and is held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst.

About this work

Overview

The Potuans are Surprised to see Niels Klim Genuflect in front of the Wise Prince is an oil painting created by Nicolai Abildgaard in 1793. It is a work of neoclassical art held in the Statens Museum for Kunst.

Subject & Meaning

The painting depicts a scene from Ludvig Holberg's 1741 satirical novel Niels Klim's Underground Travels, showing Niels Klim kneeling before the Wise Prince. The presence of halos and a crowned figure suggests a symbolic or spiritual context, rather than a straightforward narrative.

Technique & Style

Abildgaard's use of oil paint and neoclassical style is evident in the dimly lit, shadowy composition, which features a group of figures in a leafy setting. The artist's attention to detail is seen in the rendering of clothing and facial expressions.

History & Provenance

Abildgaard, a professor at the New Royal Danish Academy of Art, worked as a royal history painter on various commissions before some of his works were lost in a fire in 1794. This painting is one of his surviving works.

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Artist & collection

Artist

Nicolai Abildgaard

Nicolai Abraham Abildgaard (11 September 1743 – 4 June 1809) was a Danish neoclassical and royal history painter, sculptor, architect, and professor of painting, mythology, and anatomy at the New Royal Danish Academy of Art in Copenhagen…