Charles Sims RA, Clio and the Children, 1913 & 1915.
Oil on canvas. 1143 mm x 1829 mm. © Photo: Royal Academy of Arts, London. Photographer: John Hammond.
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Clio and the Children, 1913 & 1915
Charles Sims RA (1873 - 1928)
RA Collection: Art
Charles Sims often painted mythological scenes in everyday contexts, using friends and family members as models. He painted this picture in 1913 while living at Fittleworth, West Sussex. It depicts Clio, Muse of History, reading to a group of children in a still Sussex landscape. In 1915, following the death of his eldest son in World War I, Sims stained Clio’s scroll with red paint to represent blood. Sims believed that the War had violated the innocence of future generations. He felt that History could no longer be personified as a beautiful goddess passing on wisdom but that she had more violent lessons to teach.
Object details
1143 mm x 1829 mm
Associated works of art
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