When viewing the 2010 Hollywood film "Clash of the Titans", masterworks in the world of art aren't the first concern that comes to mind, at least not the visual arts. Yet the tale has its roots in a story that has encouraged artists for centuries. The story with regards to the daughter of the king of Argos and Eurydice who was foretold that he could be killed by his daughters son and subsequently locked her in a tower of bronze. Here she was visited by Zeus, in the form of a shower of gold, who thus impregnated her, leading to the birth of Perseus. The king tossed them both into the sea in a wooden box, but they were rescued and thus begin the epic film about the legend of Perseus.

Except that for lots of artists, the best part of the story is already over. The slaying of medusa, the journey to the underworld, the rescue of Andromeda and such are all well and good, but for the true artist, another part of the story carries a lot more interest, namely the impregnation of Danae by the shower of gold.

This part, which The Clash of the Titan really ignores rather placing Zeus human shape in bed with Danae, has been the topic of many artistic depictions. From the artists of antiquity to Titus, Rembrandt and Klimt, Danae has been depicted on a number occasions as she acquires the shower of gold. Titus alone painted four versions. But what is it that strikes a chord with artist in this story. What is it that makes it so appealing to enact this unique scene?

There is of course the duality. Did Danae sense about the shower of gold and what it would do? Did she appreciate this brush with the god or did she rebuff it? Was there any love involved? Titus e.g. has Eros incorporated in one of his depictions, while in the work of Klimt, there is little done to conceal her sexual ecstasy. Still, we are dealing with prohibited love and feelings, of going against the wishes of her father and of giving herself away. There is a loss of purity in the scene, of letting go and maybe dealing with the consequences afterwards that many an artist finds interesting. It is partly an expression of the hooker - Madonna complex as the virgin is turned.

At the same time, there are also firm parallels to a different virgin who was impregnated by a god a great many years later. And while the church certainly did not in the mid-twentieth century permit the graphic depiction of that scene, Danae was still fair game. As such, some depictions of the scene do allude to that other later event, creating a somewhat ambivalent expression.

The re-emergence of attention in the old arts and legends throughout the renaissance also contributed. With this re-emergence came the legends and heroes of old. Gustav Klimt also had a well founded love for Greek myths and portrayed not only Danae but also Pallas Athene herself.

Nevertheless, in the conclusion, with all the usual legends of Perseus and his exploits taken into accounts, why is it Danae that we see time and time again? Could it be down to the basics of a pretty young woman, seduced and/or taken by a man she is not supposed to see, and potentially being a willing accomplice in this act? While other sections of the story deals with the fantastic, the fundamental principles here are the mainstays of human nature, of love and desire, innocence and betrayal. These immortal characteristics have normally driven men and inspired artists and in Danae they adopted their muse.