The story of Goethe’s Faust – a man of science and reason who succumbed to the charm of the young Marguerite – firstly captivated Eugène Delacroix in the 1820s, hence in the early stages of his career. In 1826, the publisher Charles Motte gave him the opportunity to illustrate Albert Stapfer’s French translation of Faust. In 1828, the artist supplied 17 lithographs to illustrate the tragic play. Upon publication, which took place shortly after his acclaimed presentation of The Death of Sardanapalus at the Salon, they were met with immense success.
Set against a masterfully executed medieval backdrop, our sheet depicts Faust and Marguerite in Prison – the tragic moment in which Faust desperately, and vainly, tried to persuade Marguerite to escape with him. Our composition, dated 1828, belongs to a series of works drawn alongside the final set of illustrations (fig. 1). This series also includes Delacroixʼs drawing displaying Mephistopheles Appearing to Faust (fig. 2) – bought by the Pierpont Morgan Library in 2017 – whose technique and dimensions are almost identical to ours.
For the rendering of the embrace of the two figures standing in the centre of the composition, Delacroix partly drew inspiration from the ancient sculpture of Psyche and Love, of which he drew a Study (fig. 3) in the Saint Sylvestre sketchbook, now held at the Louvre. Faust’s twisting body and crossed legs are reminiscent of the sculpture’s figure of Eros.
