Gerard van Honthorst (signed by artist), 1623
A smiling nymph playfully tugs a satyr towards her by his goatee, clearly asserting control over him. Van Honthorst draws attention to her bare torso; her brightly illuminated white skin contrasts sharply with the satyr’s muscular physique and red head. By portraying the mythological figures up close, Van Honthorst draws us into this intimate scene.
https://id.rijksmuseum.nl/200612824
You can fall in love
in a museum, but only
with the art
or its silence—or the stranger
you don’t mean to follow
…
Diptych, Kevin Young
