Thorvaldsen, Bertel, 1770-1844. Danish sculptor.
Thorvaldsen was a Danish neo-classical sculptor who created much of his massive production in Rome. He succeeded Antonio Canova in achieving a pan-European renown. His output includes classicizing sculptures (nudes and robed) and some sculpture groups (e.g. Ganymede with Jupiter’s Eagle), Christian sculptures (e.g. Christus and twelve free-standing Apostles for the cathedral in Copenhagen), many portrait busts of contemporary men and women in classical style, but also scores of relief panels on classical topics (e.g. Nessus’ rape of Deianeira). Thorvaldsen also collected many paintings by other artists. The Thorvaldsensmuseum in Copenhagen is veritably packed with the sculptor’s prodigious production in plaster prototypes and marble finished products. Both the museum and the artist stand soundly as national treasures.
The artist’s surname is often anglicized to “Thorwaldsen.” We follow in the OGCMA-online the Library of Congress authority file.
Bibliography can be found at Oxford Art Online: https://doi.org/10.1093/gao/9781884446054.article.T084718
The catalog of the Thorvaldsensmuseum’s indexing offers opportunities for thorough cross-referencing (for clarity’s sake). Thorvaldsen worked with several different settings of Ganymede. Thus, OGCMA Ganymede1.0111_Thorvaldsen = Thorvaldsenmuseum A44, A45 (plaster cast), and A733 (plaster cast of a reduced version).
IN the OGCMA, Thorvaldsen’s works appear in numerous listings:
~ Achilles, Infancy, Wrath; Actaeon; Adonis; Ajax; Aphrodite, General List, Birth; Apollo, General List, as Shepherd, Loves; Ares; Ariadne; Artemis; Asclepius and Hygieia; Athena, General List; Bacchanalia; Callisto; Daphne; Dionysus, General List, and Ariadne, Infancy; Dioscuri; Endymion; Eros, General List, Punishment, and the Bee, Triumphant; Fates; Ganymbde; Gods and Goddesses, as Elements, Vice and Virtue; Graces; Hebe; Hector, General List, Death; Hephaestus; Heracles, General List, and Deianeira, Apotheosis; Hermes, General List; Hymen; Io; Jason, General List, Hylas, Golden Fleece; Leda; Leto; Meleager, Boar Hunt; Muses, General List, Poetry and Music, Dance, Drama; Narcissus; Nymphs, General List; Odysseus, Return; Orion; Pan, General List; Paris, General List, Judgment; Parnassus; Patroclus; Pegasus; Penthesilea; Perseus, and Andromeda; Prometheus, Creator; Psyche; Syrinx; Zeus, General List.