HELSINKI.- The Sinebrychoff Art Museum offers you drama, strength, beauty, sacrifice, and incredible plot twists. Ancient hero tales are certainly not short of action or powerful emotions.


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“The narratives often follow a similar pattern. The beginning looks promising and everyone has good intentions, but then it all explodes and the story goes in the opposite direction,” Claudia de Brün, curator of the exhibition, says.

The Greek heroes’ adventures are described in ancient epic poems, they appear in works of art and, in the classical period, step onto the theatre stage. In Greek tragedies, the viewer is subjected to feelings of fear, pity and compassion, since, according to the ancient theory of poetry, this allows us to release negative emotions. Fascination with and enjoyment of art thus lead to catharsis, to purification of the soul and mind. No wonder, then, that ancient tales have been part of Western culture for more than 2000 years. Over the centuries, the characters and stories have established their place in the Western canon, while always seeking new forms. They are reborn time and time again, and their influence is now seen, for instance, in comics, games and films.

“With this exhibition, we want to bring out the influence of ancient tales on our current culture. They permeate all the strata of Western art, and we may not always recognise links to them. I also want to stress the importance of ancient languages and research in our own time,” says Museum Director Kirsi Eskelinen.

Classical tales have influenced the visual arts, and various interpretations of them have been made throughout history. The Classical Heroes exhibition shows Greco-Roman ceramics, sculptures from different periods, prints, paintings, and contemporary art made using various methods. The works are mainly from the Finnish National Gallery’s own collection. The exhibition focuses on the main heroes of Greek mythology, Heracles and Perseus, as well as Achilles, Odysseus, Hector and Paris, who fought in the Trojan War.

Brave, invincible heroes – or pawns resigned to their fate

In ancient tales, fate drives the hero into his intended role and he is guided by the Olympian gods. The hero’s destiny is predetermined, and the road to success is not without sacrifice and tribulation. The stories do not always end in triumph – even great heroes fail. The most important thing is the story, not whether the hero gets to live happily ever after.

One of the best-known heroes of antiquity is Heracles (Hercules in Latin) and a huge number of stories are associated with him. Heracles is the son of the chief god Zeus and the mortal Alcmene. His fate is preordained and his story begins with a great tragedy contrived by Zeus’ jealous wife Hera in revenge against her husband. Heracles kills his own family and, in reparation, performs 12 labours while on his adventures in the Mediterranean. In these fast-paced labours Heracles fights, wrestles, robs, and more. The stories have, nevertheless, been seen as personifying strength and virtue.

“One of the reasons for the popularity of Heracles’ stories as a model of virtue is that he resigned himself to his fate and acted for a higher purpose. He is a highly protean character, who incorporates human, and even negative, traits. It was tragedy that made him the hero we know,” Claudia de Brün says.

Heracles did no more nor less than save the world order according to his father Zeus’ plan, and in so doing became a hero of the entire ancient world. Heracles is further considered to be the founder of many cities and, according to Greek myths, also staged the first Olympic Games. As we can see, he had plenty of achievements, which were lent wings by his adventures.

The twelve labours of Heracles were pictured as far back as ancient Greece. Sebald Beham’s (1500–1550) Heracles-themed series depicts the hero’s exploits. The labours are also portrayed in a comic-book animation commissioned from comic artist and illustrator Viivi Rintanen and animator Tuukka Toivanen. This same subject has been portrayed in different techniques for thousands of years, and the stories still entertain us today.

Stories that live and change with time

The main roles in ancient hero tales are reserved for men. For the most part, heroes are men and their stories are written from a male perspective. A frequent plot line has the hero pursuing a woman for her beauty. Nevertheless, in Greek mythology, women can also take on diverse roles, and are not as limited as it at first seems. Goddesses such as Hera, Athena and Aphrodite help dictate the fate of the heroes.

One well-known female character is the snake-haired Medusa, whose superpower was her gaze, which turned those who looked at her to stone. The exhibition includes Ellen Thesleff’s (1869–1954) interpretation of the figure of Medusa. Medusa’s head is seen as a protective symbol and is currently the emblem of an international fashion house. Heroes have also served as role models for rulers, and their symbols have been widely used when they have wanted to be associated with the attributes that the heroes represent, such as physical strength, beauty and wisdom.

“Today’s ideas of heroism are often surprisingly close to ancient models. But the stories are reshaped, living and changing with time, and thus always serving and speaking as best suits the audience of their day,” says Claudia de Brün.

Exhibition curator: Claudia de Brün, Chief Curator Sinebrychoff Art Museum


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