At the end of the eighteenth century, the British sculptor John Flaxman (1755-1826) initiated a new
At the end of the eighteenth century, the British sculptor John Flaxman (1755-1826) initiated a new tradition in funerary sculpture by portraying the human soul as a full-bodied adult. Flaxman was a devoted reader of the writings of Emanuel Swedenborg (1688-1772), a Swedish philosopher and theologian.In Swedenborgian belief, the soul is continuously kept in spiritual freedom. Flaxman’s “Deliver Us from Evil” depicts a male figure struggling upwards, with four spirits—two good and two evil—fighting for his soul. This sculpture represents the crucial moment of choice between good and evil, experienced by all humans. -- source link
#john flaxman#funerary sculpture#emanuel swedenborg#spirits#glencairn museum