Gustave Moreau, Hercules and the Lernaean Hydra, oil on canvas, France ca. 1875-76, The Art Institute, Chicago. Gustave Moreau was an extremely accomplished artist, and he developed a style that combined history, myth, and infatuation with the strange and exotic. Placed within the artistic era of Romanticism, he held a focus on the mysteries of human existence rather than capturing the normal realities of the world around him. Moreau was extremely interested in the myth of Hercules, which provided his mind with an immense amount of imagination when designing Hercules and the Lernaean Hydra. Hovering above an almost primitive brown painted area lays the seven-headed Hydra, a serpent-like giant. The dead and dying victims secure their spot on the swampy ground. An extremely youthful Hercules stands upon the butchery with a weapon in hand. His goal is to sever the seventh head of the Hydra, which he will bury later. Regardless of the wicked center topic, the painting holds a hauntingly still aura. This mysterious standard placed within the piece reinforces Moreau’s ability to combine suggestive thoughts and compulsive detail. The perfection of his artistic abilities and the unearthliness of the color values used are the product of his meticulous techniques. He created many preliminary sketches for every aspect of the piece. Opposing the exactitude, Moreau also created daring, radiant watercolors that avoided detail. It seems that this mythological painting is intended to portray the qualities of contemporary political issues. Moreau was affected by France’s military concurrence by Prussia in 1870. Many believe that Hercules symbolizes France, and the Hydra is Prussia. This miraculous piece of work conveys a morality difference between opposite forces, good and evil, light and darkness, and intensity and power.
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