interventions: The Sabine Women
The Intervention of the Sabine Women is a 1799 painting by the French painter Jacques-Louis David, showing a legendary episode following the abduction of the Sabine women by the founding generation of Rome.
According to Roman mythology, when Rome was founded by Romulus there weren’t enough Romans, and so the men were encouraged to abduct the neighbouring Sabine women to make sure they had a progeny. The mass abduction—or rape (historical accounts vary)—happened during a festival at which different local people were gathered. Romans grabbed Sabine women, and Romulus begged them to accept these men as their husbands. This crime against the Sabine women—raped or stolen, they were forcibly removed from their community and into marriages with Romans—has been depicted by many artists throughout history, from Degas to Poussin to Picasso. Why is this scene of mass abuse so celebrated?
To fight, to resist, to struggle.
unsanctioned intervention, New York City, 2021.
Acrylic paint, pencil, archival ink, Fabriano paper (23 X15 inches)
