Un Incubo
ca. 1775-80
Step into a late 18th-century fever dream where classical mythology meets pure terror. A terrified woman in a flowing white gown finds herself the center of a chaotic scene, with a muscular demon leaping onto her back while a skeleton casually tends to a smoking urn nearby. Looming in the shadows is a giant figure seated next to a three-headed dog—likely Cerberus—suggesting this nightmare is taking place at the very gates of the underworld. Created around 1775 by Giovanni David, this drawing captures the Neoclassical fascination with the 'sublime'—art meant to awe and frighten—predating Henry Fuseli's famous nightmare painting by just a few years.