Winter by Jean Antoine Houdon (Interpretation and Analysis)

Winter
Source: MET Museum

Today is the first official day of winter (although, in my opinion, it’s felt like winter for a while already). So, in honor of the winter solstice, I want to share a piece of art that personifies winter itself.

There is a long tradition in Western art of anthropomorphizing the seasons and other abstract concepts. The seasons carry special symbolism and they are often associated with the cycle of life. Winter, as the coldest and darkest season of the year, is typically associated with death and old age. As such, winter is usually depicted as an old man or old woman, a person approaching the end of life.

French sculptor Jean Antoine Houdon, however, took a different approach to this subject. Rather than an elderly man, Houdon depicts winter as a young girl. Houdon’s Winter stands nude, hunched and shivering. Her head and shoulders are covered by a large, yet ineffective, shawl. Although it is obvious that the shawl does very little to warm the girl, it provides contrast with her bare, shivering flesh. The shawl serves to highlight her vulnerability in the face of the elements.

Her downcast face is calm and dignified, despite the cold, highlighting the allegorical nature of the piece. As a symbol, however, Winter is incredibly effective. It provides a new look at the season of winter, one that captures the fragility that all people experience in the face of the bitter cold and winter elements.

As a piece of art, however, Winter is also a success. It is executed in a clean, elegant style that was typical of the Neoclassical movement. According to my research, “The sculptor abraded the bronze to give it a sleek, shimmering finish, as revealed by tool marks on the surface.” The figure of Winter stands alone and unadorned, beautiful in her simplicity.