Mythos is a project by Baptiste Lignel (FR) that examines the representation of gender-based violence in the history of Western art. Through photography it focuses on paintings and sculptures from the fifteenth to the eighteenth centuries depicting scenes of sexual violence from Greco-Roman mythology, in particular the narratives of Ovid's Metamorphoses. Many of these works are celebrated masterpieces in museum collections, yet the stories they portray raise pressing questions about power, violence and the ways these images have been presented and interpreted over the centuries.

For the project, 104 artworks were photographed in 27 museums across Europe. The photographs are the starting point for a broader reflection on the role of museums in exhibiting and contextualising works that depict gender-based violence: how museum displays shape our perception of these images, how their meanings have evolved, and how museums can balance artistic appreciation with awareness of the impact violent imagery may have on contemporary audiences. At a time when sexual violence and women's rights receive increasing international attention, the book contributes to an urgent discussion about the place of these iconic artworks within cultural institutions. By questioning how these founding myths and aesthetic traditions shape our cultural imagination, the book invites readers to reconsider familiar masterpieces and explores the relationship between beauty and violence in art, while noting how some museums have begun to add content warnings or interpretive texts.

The publication is complemented by essays from art historians and museum professionals, among them Silvia Giorgi, Anna Bisceglia (Gallerie degli Uffizi), Nat Silver (Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum) and Marie Robert (Musée d'Orsay), who examine the mythological narratives, their historical contexts and their contemporary relevance.