Hermes and the Infant Dionysus

Arthur B. Davies's "Hermes and the Infant Dionysus" (1900–1915) is an oil on canvas that reenvisions the celebrated ancient Greek statue by Praxiteles, capturing the mythological moment when the messenger god Hermes carries the infant Dionysus to be raised by nymphs. Davies (1862–1928) was a pivotal figure in American art—a painter of dreamlike, mythological scenes and the driving force behind the legendary 1913 Armory Show that introduced European modernism to America. His style blended Symbolism, classical idealism, and an ethereal tonalism reminiscent of Whistler. In this painting, Davies transforms the sculptural group into a misty, atmospheric landscape, with the figures emerging from a golden-hued, Arcadian setting. The relationship between Hermes and the infant god is rendered with tender gravity. Davies's work often explored themes of childhood, mythology, and the pastoral ideal, creating a body of work that felt deliberately apart from the industrialization and urbanization of early 20th-century America. As a collector and organizer, Davies shaped the course of American modernism more than almost any single figure.

Davies's role in organizing the 1913 Armory Show made him arguably the single most important figure in bringing European modernism to American audiences, revolutionizing American art in the process.

This oil painting demonstrates Davies's unique synthesis of classical mythology and modern painterly sensibility, creating a dreamlike world that offered an alternative to both academic realism and avant-garde abstraction.