Crenaia, the Nymph of the Dargle

Crenaia, the Nymph of the Dargle is an oil on canvas by Frederic Leighton, first shown in 1880. The figure stands full length, almost nude, facing the viewer, her arms modestly crossed over her chest and wrapped in creamy white drapery that barely covers her. Behind her, a waterfall on the River Dargle, which runs through the Powerscourt estate in Ireland, gives the picture its alternative name. In Greek myth, Crenaia was one of the goddesses of rocks, headlands and cliffs, a link that suits the rocky niche where she is placed. Leighton had painted landscapes in Ireland in 1874, and the first owner was Lord Powerscourt. When it was exhibited at the Royal Academy, Frederic George Stephens praised the grace of the gesture and the design of the drapery, though he found the flesh tones a little too rosy and pale. Edgcumbe Staley judged her the least idealised of Leighton's girl figures, and her Irish character is its most distinctive trait.

Painter

Frederic Leighton

Date

1880

Medium

oil paint, canvas

Museum

Pérez Simón Collection

Movement

Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood

Genre

mythological painting

Share:FacebookWhatsApp