Original artwork description:

In Antoine and Cleopatra, Nicolas Maureau reimagines the fall of a legendary couple of power. Inspired by historical iconography and religious art (notably Saint Sebastian and Irene), the scene freezes the moment of collapse — political, physical, intimate.

Cleopatra, adorned in a contemporary bolero with pharaonic echoes, holds the dying Antony in a gesture of ambiguous tenderness. He sits on the ground, exposed and fragile, in military shorts — not heroic, but already defeated.

This painting, part of the En majesté series, explores the symbolic weight of power, the vulnerability behind the myth, and the theatricality of collapse. Set against a deep black background, the figures become timeless icons — halfway between mythology and modernity.

Materials used:

oil painting

Tags: