Ancient Pastimes by John William Godward

The tradition of familiar playful scenes and nostalgia for a poetic Greco-Roman daily life inspire this creation of great linear refinement. Through the ultimate scene entitled “Ancient Pastimes”, the renowned portraitist John William Godward captures the grace of a young woman busy with a game of knucklebones on a sunny terrace. The canvas celebrates the perfect harmony between the flexibility of the human body, the rigidity of classical statuary, and the splendor of a timeless Mediterranean landscape.

A young brunette woman is crouching on a polished white marble floor, her body oriented in partial profile toward the left of the composition. She wears a finely pleated golden-yellow stola, fitted by a crimson belt and a large turquoise-blue drapery tied around her hips. With her extended right hand stretched forward, she throws small white bones on the light and shiny pavement. Behind her rises a monumental white marble statue depicting a draped woman, surmounted by the flowering branches of a tall tree with pink buds. On the horizon, dark cypresses and rocky mountains frame a beautiful, calm and blue sea.

The creator’s artisanal genius shines through in the ideal modeling of the face and the virtuoso treatment of light reflections on the marble. His flawless oil technique allows him to restore the roughness of the bark and the delicacy of the petals with perfect realism. This meticulous execution underlines his immense technical expertise.