Ghost in art: paintings, drawings and prints

The Erinyes Drive Alcmaeon from the Corpse of His Mother, Eriphyle, Whom He Has Killed, Johann Heinrich Füssli

The Erinyes Drive Alcmaeon from the Corpse of His Mother, Eriphyle, Whom He Has Killed, 1821.

Die Erinnyen vertreiben Alkmaion von der Leiche seiner von… (museum title)

Johann Heinrich Füssli (Swiss), oil on canvas

Kunsthaus Zürich, Switzerland

Asmodea, 1819.

Vision fantastique (museum title)

Francisco de Goya (Spanish), oil on plaster, transferred to canvas

Prado Museum, Spain

Funereal Folly, from "The Disparates" (Follies / Irrationalities), Francisco de Goya

Funereal Folly, from "The Disparates" (Follies / Irrationalities), c. 1815–1819.

Funereal Folly, from "The Disparates" (Follies /… (museum title)

Francisco de Goya (Spanish), etching, burnished aquatint

Metropolitan Museum of Art, United States

A nun frightened by a ghost playing a guitar; page 65 from the "Images of Spain" Album (F), Francisco de Goya

A nun frightened by a ghost playing a guitar; page 65 from the "Images of Spain" Album (F), c. 1812–1820.

A nun frightened by a ghost playing a guitar; page 65 from… (museum title)

Francisco de Goya (Spanish), brush, brown ink wash, black chalk

Metropolitan Museum of Art, United States

Auti te Pape (Women at the River), Paul Gauguin

Auti te Pape (Women at the River), 1894.

Auti te Pape (Women at the River) (museum title)

Paul Gauguin (French), woodcut on China paper

National Gallery of Art, United States

Fingal Sees the Ghosts of his Forefathers by Moonlight, Nicolai Abildgaard

Fingal Sees the Ghosts of his Forefathers by Moonlight, c. 1780–1784.

Fingal ser sine forfædres ånder ved månens skin (museum title)

Nicolai Abildgaard (Danish), oil on canvas

Statens Museum for Kunst, Denmark

Josef Lewinsky as Carlos in Clavigo, Gustav Klimt

Josef Lewinsky as Carlos in Clavigo, 1895.

Josef Lewinsky as Carlos in Clavigo (museum title)

Gustav Klimt (Austrian), oil on canvas

Belvedere Museum, Austria

Tam O'Shanter poursuivi par les sorcières, Eugène Delacroix

Tam O'Shanter poursuivi par les sorcières, 1849.

Tam O'Shanter poursuivi par les sorcières (museum title)

Eugène Delacroix (French), oil on canvas

Kunstmuseum Basel, Switzerland

The Ghost on the Terrace (Act I, Scene V), Eugène Delacroix

The Ghost on the Terrace (Act I, Scene V), 1843.

The Ghost on the Terrace (Act I, Scene V) (museum title)

Eugène Delacroix (French)

Rosenwald Collection, United States

The Wobbling Head, 1834.

La tête branlante (museum title)

Honoré Daumier (French), lithograph

National Gallery of Art, United States

Collectors of prints, c. 1870–1873.

Amateurs d’estampes (museum title)

Honoré Daumier (French), oil on canvas

Museum of Fine Arts, Ghent (MSK Gent), Belgium

Eve ['The Nightmare'] (recto); Eve ['The Nightmare'] (verso) (2007.33), Paul Gauguin

Eve ['The Nightmare'] (recto); Eve ['The Nightmare'] (verso) (2007.33), c. 1899–1900.

Eve ['The Nightmare'] (recto); Eve ['The Nightmare']… (museum title)

Paul Gauguin (French), ink

J. Paul Getty Museum, United States

Plate 69 from "The Disasters of War" (Los Desastres de la Guerra): 'Nothing. The event will tell' (Nada. Ello dirá), Francisco de Goya

Plate 69 from "The Disasters of War" (Los Desastres de la Guerra): 'Nothing. The event will tell' (Nada. Ello dirá), 1814–1815.

Plate 69 from "The Disasters of War" (Los Desastres de la… (museum title)

Francisco de Goya (Spanish), etching, burnished aquatint, wash, drypoint, burin

Metropolitan Museum of Art, United States

The Ghost in the Churchyard, Akseli Gallen-Kallela

The Ghost in the Churchyard, 1906–1908.

Haamu kirkkotarhassa (museum title)

Akseli Gallen-Kallela (Finnish), black chalk on paper

Finnish National Gallery, Finland

When he had come out into the middle of the bog, there were so many people that he really had to elbow his way through, Hans Gude

When he had come out into the middle of the bog, there were so many people that he really had to elbow his way through, 1878.

Da han var kommen midt ut på myra, var det så fullt med… (museum title)

Hans Gude (Norwegian), pencil, pen and wash on paper

National Museum of Norway

Fingal sees the spirits of his ancestors in the light of the moon. Scene from Ossian, Nicolai Abildgaard

Fingal sees the spirits of his ancestors in the light of the moon. Scene from Ossian, 1780s.

Fingal ser sine forfædres ånder ved månens skin. Scene af… (museum title)

Nicolai Abildgaard (Danish), drawing

Statens Museum for Kunst, Denmark

Hamlet and his Mother. Episode from Shakspeare's Hamlet, Nicolai Abildgaard

Hamlet and his Mother. Episode from Shakspeare's Hamlet, c. 1776–1779.

Hamlet hos sin moder (museum title)

Nicolai Abildgaard (Danish), oil on canvas

Statens Museum for Kunst, Denmark

Plate 80 from "Los Caprichos": It is time (Ya es hora), Francisco de Goya

Plate 80 from "Los Caprichos": It is time (Ya es hora), 1799.

Plate 80 from "Los Caprichos": It is time (Ya es hora) (museum title)

Francisco de Goya (Spanish), etching, burnished aquatint, drypoint, burin

Metropolitan Museum of Art, United States

Scene of Ossian; Agandecca appears to Fingal. From the Fingal poem

Scene of Ossian; Agandecca viser sig for Fingal. Af… (museum title)

Nicolai Abildgaard (Danish), white chalk, pen and brown ink

Statens Museum for Kunst, Denmark

Hamlet et le Spectre, 1825.

Hamlet et le Spectre (museum title)

Eugène Delacroix (French), oil on canvas

Jagiellonian University Museum, Poland

Sketches for illustrations for Selma Lagerlöf's novel Herr Arne's Hoard, Albert Edelfelt

Sketches for illustrations for Selma Lagerlöf's novel Herr Arne's Hoard, 1904.

Kuvitusluonnoksia Selma Lagerlöfin romaaniin Aarne herran… (museum title)

Albert Edelfelt (Finnish), sepia on paper

Finnish National Gallery, Finland

Humana (The female genius of evil), Carl Larsson

Humana (The female genius of evil), 1912.

Humana (Det ondas kvinnliga genius) (museum title)

Carl Larsson (Swedish), etching on paper

Gothenburg Museum of Art, Sweden

Plate 80 from "The Disasters of War" (Los Desastres de la Guerra): 'Will she rise again?' (Si resucitará?), Francisco de Goya

Plate 80 from "The Disasters of War" (Los Desastres de la Guerra): 'Will she rise again?' (Si resucitará?), 1814–1815.

Plate 80 from "The Disasters of War" (Los Desastres de la… (museum title)

Francisco de Goya (Spanish), etching, burnisher

Metropolitan Museum of Art, United States

Beethoven Frieze (plate 2, left wall): Yearning for Happiness, Gustav Klimt

Beethoven Frieze (plate 2, left wall): Yearning for Happiness, 1901.

Beethoven Frieze (plate 2, left wall): Yearning for… (museum title)

Gustav Klimt (Austrian)

Belvedere Museum, Austria

Te Po (The Long Night), 1894.

Te Po (The Long Night) (museum title)

Paul Gauguin (French), woodcut on China paper

National Gallery of Art, United States

Noa Noa; The Devil Speaks (Mahna No Varua Ino), Paul Gauguin

Noa Noa; The Devil Speaks (Mahna No Varua Ino), 1893–1894.

Noa Noa; The Devil Speaks (Mahna No Varua Ino) (museum title)

Paul Gauguin (French), woodblock print

Cleveland Museum of Art, United States

Plate 3 from "Los Caprichos": Here comes the bogey-man (Que viene el Coco), Francisco de Goya

Plate 3 from "Los Caprichos": Here comes the bogey-man (Que viene el Coco), 1799.

Plate 3 from "Los Caprichos": Here comes the bogey-man (Que… (museum title)

Francisco de Goya (Spanish), etching, burnished aquatint

Metropolitan Museum of Art, United States

The Bewitched Man, 1798.

La Lampe du diable (museum title)

Francisco de Goya (Spanish), oil on canvas

National Gallery, United Kingdom

Hamlet Wishes to Follow the Ghost of his Father (Act I, Scene IV), Eugène Delacroix

Hamlet Wishes to Follow the Ghost of his Father (Act I, Scene IV), 1835.

Hamlet Wishes to Follow the Ghost of his Father (Act I… (museum title)

Eugène Delacroix (French)

Prints in the National Gallery of Art, United States

Tam O'Shanter, 1825.

Tam O'Shanter (museum title)

Eugène Delacroix (French), oil on canvas

Nottingham City Museums and Galleries, United Kingdom

Achilles Grasping at the Shade of Patroclus, Johann Heinrich Füssli

Achilles Grasping at the Shade of Patroclus, 1803.

Achilleus greift nach dem Schatten des Patroklos (museum title)

Johann Heinrich Füssli (Swiss), oil on canvas

Kunsthaus Zürich, Switzerland

Dancing Giant, from "The Disparates" (Follies / Irrationalities), Francisco de Goya

Dancing Giant, from "The Disparates" (Follies / Irrationalities), c. 1815–1819.

Dancing Giant, from "The Disparates" (Follies /… (museum title)

Francisco de Goya (Spanish), etching, burnished aquatint, drypoint

Metropolitan Museum of Art, United States

Unholy Union, c. 1813–1819.

Unholy Union (museum title)

Francisco de Goya (Spanish), brush, India ink and wash, traces of pen and ink, on laid paper

Metropolitan Museum of Art, United States

Beethoven Frieze (plate 4, left wall): Yearning for Happiness, Gustav Klimt

Beethoven Frieze (plate 4, left wall): Yearning for Happiness, 1901.

Beethoven Frieze (plate 4, left wall): Yearning for… (museum title)

Gustav Klimt (Austrian)

Belvedere Museum, Austria

Beethoven Frieze (plate 7, right wall): Yearning for happiness is assuaged in poetry, Gustav Klimt

Beethoven Frieze (plate 7, right wall): Yearning for happiness is assuaged in poetry, 1901.

Beethoven Frieze (plate 7, right wall): Yearning for… (museum title)

Gustav Klimt (Austrian)

Belvedere Museum, Austria

The Ghost, 1889.

The Ghost (museum title)

James Ensor (Belgian), etching

Museum of Fine Arts, Ghent (MSK Gent), Belgium

Writing Ghost, 1896.

Skrivarspöket (museum title)

Carl Larsson (Swedish), etching on paper

Gothenburg Museum of Art, Sweden

Spirits of Sorrow, sketch of a polychrome motif for the parish church in Biecz (?), Stanisław Wyspiański

Spirits of Sorrow, sketch of a polychrome motif for the parish church in Biecz (?), 1896.

Duchy smutku, szkic motywu do polichromii kościoła… (museum title)

Stanisław Wyspiański (Polish), pastel and colored pencil on paper

National Museum in Warsaw, Poland

Ghosts, 18th–19th century.

Ghosts (museum title)

Katsushika Hokusai (Japanese), two paintings mounted together; ink on paper

Metropolitan Museum of Art, United States

A Subject from the Runic Superstitions ..., J. M. W. Turner

A Subject from the Runic Superstitions ..., 1808.

A Subject from the Runic Superstitions ... (museum title)

J. M. W. Turner (British), oil on canvas

Tate Britain, United Kingdom

Witches' Sabbath, 1820–1823.

Le Sabbat des sorcières (museum title)

Francisco de Goya (Spanish), oil on plaster, transferred to canvas

Prado Museum, Spain

'Folly of Fear' from the 'Disparates' (Follies / Irrationalities), Francisco de Goya

'Folly of Fear' from the 'Disparates' (Follies / Irrationalities), c. 1815–1819.

'Folly of Fear' from the 'Disparates' (Follies /… (museum title)

Francisco de Goya (Spanish), etching, burnished aquatint, drypoint

Metropolitan Museum of Art, United States

A radiant female figure beset by dark spirits; page 45 from the "Images of Spain" Album (F), Francisco de Goya

A radiant female figure beset by dark spirits; page 45 from the "Images of Spain" Album (F), c. 1812–1820.

A radiant female figure beset by dark spirits; page 45 from… (museum title)

Francisco de Goya (Spanish), brush, brown and gray washes over black chalk

Metropolitan Museum of Art, United States

When he had come out into the middle of the bog, there were so many people that he really had to elbow his way through, 1878.

Da han var kommen midt ut på myra, var det så fullt med… (museum title)

Hans Gude (Norwegian), pen, wash and pencil on paper

National Museum of Norway

Beethoven Frieze (plate 1, left wall): Yearning for Happiness, Gustav Klimt

Beethoven Frieze (plate 1, left wall): Yearning for Happiness, 1901.

Beethoven Frieze (plate 1, left wall): Yearning for… (museum title)

Gustav Klimt (Austrian)

Belvedere Museum, Austria

Love, 1895.

Love (museum title)

Gustav Klimt (Austrian), oil on canvas

Wien Museum, Austria

The Writing Ghost, 1896.

Skrivarspöket (museum title)

Carl Larsson (Swedish), etching on paper

Nationalmuseum, Sweden

The Apparition, 1894.

Zjawa (museum title)

Jacek Malczewski (Polish), oil on cardboard

National Museum in Warsaw, Poland

The Phantom, 1835.

Le Fantome (museum title)

Honoré Daumier (French), lithograph

National Gallery of Art, United States

Broken pine tree in fog, Leon Wyczółkowski

Broken pine tree in fog, 1907.

Złamana sosna we mgle (museum title)

Leon Wyczółkowski (Polish), lithograph

National Museum in Warsaw, Poland