DIVINE COMEDY

 

Harriet Moore's body of work, entitled The Divine Comedy, is a visual interpretation of the poem by the 14th century Italian poet, Dante Alighieri. The work consists of over 20 4' x 9' paintings and 22 sculptures in terra-cotta, bronze, and wood, created over a 20 year period, from 1970 to 1990.

 

"Ms. Moore follows the dramatic device of Dante's epic journey of the soul through the three realms of the afterworld. Her paintings and sculptures take the viewer through grotesque visions of Hell in the Inferno in the beginning. The torments of this black despair give way to the struggle out of darkness into the purging and healing plane of Purgatorio. The series culminates with emergence into the harmony and renewal of Paradiso." - Rosicrucian Art Gallery

 

Ms. Moore states: :"The main characters in this drama are Dante, the pilgrim; Virgil, human wisdom; and Beatrice, divine love. Virgil guides Dante through the depths of Hell, where they see souls in pain, and then they struggle up the mountain of Purgatory. At the summit of Purgatory Dante meets Beatrice, who will guide Dante upward in flight through the heavenly spheres."