After the Audience
Artist: Lawrence Alma-Tadema (British, 1836 - 1912)
Original Dimensions: 36" x 26 1/8"
Location: National Gallery of Art, London
About Artwork: (1879) "The figure ascending the stairs is Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa (63??12 BC): general, statesman, architect and close friend to Augustus Caesar, who reigned as the first Roman Emperor from 27 BC. Agrippa moves through his impressive villa, away from the figures making their requests, and the objects they have given, on the landing below. The details of the image are precisely represented, from the dramatic fall of Agrippa’s red cape, the wide expanses of marble, to the objects laid over the tiger skin. The crowd of people on the right demonstrate the artist’s abilities in capturing variations of emotion. The sculpture of Augustus which represents imperial power and authority, dominates the foreground. It was based on the now-celebrated ‘Augustus of Prima Porta’, which had only been rediscovered in 1863. This underscores Alma-Tadema’s desire for his work to be current and historically accurate." - (National Gallery of Art, London)

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