Antonio Canova (1757-1822) was an Italian sculptor who became the most important representative of Italian classicism. In 1770 he began a two-year sculpture apprenticeship and then studied at the 'Accademia di belle arti di Venezia' (Venice Academy of Fine Arts). In 1775 Canova became an independent sculptor in Venice; from 1781 to 1797 he worked in Rome. His fame led to commissions from France, England, Russia, Austria and Holland. Between 1803 and 1809 he made sculptures for Napoleon and his family. Between 1796 and 1817 Canova created four versions of statues of Hebe, the Greek goddess of youth. They are now in the National Gallery in Berlin, the Hermitage in St Petersburg, Chatsworth House (Derbyshire, England) and the San Domenico Museum in Forli (Italy). The statue from Forli served as the motif for the coin designer. Hebe, who is made of marble and wears a bronze headband like a necklace, holds a hydria, a watering vessel, and a bronze goblet in her hands, handing nectar to the gods as cupbearer. The Hebe sculptures, which were initially heavily criticised because of Canova's decision to combine the marble with bronze details and to give the bare white marble a pink patina in the first two works, are today among the top works of neoclassicism. |
