Known as the “Birth of Venus”, the composition actually shows
the goddess of love and beauty arriving on land, on the island of Cyprus, born of the sea spray and blown there by the winds, Zephyr and, perhaps, Aura
. The goddess is standing on a giant scallop shell, as pure and as perfect as a pearl.
Why The Birth of Venus is so important?
The Birth of Venus is undoubtedly one of the world’s most famous and appreciated works of art. Painted by Sandro Botticelli between 1482 and 1485, it has become a landmark of XV century Italian painting, so rich in meaning and
allegorical references to antiquity
.
What makes The Birth of Venus a Renaissance painting?
An early master of the Italian Renaissance, Sandro Botticelli is celebrated for his painterly contributions to the major art movement. … In addition to stylistic qualities—like color and brushwork—Botticelli’s
approach to subject matter
is what sets The Birth of Venus apart from other Renaissance depictions.
What is the reason behind the artwork of Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus?
Botticelli represented
the Neoplatonic idea of divine love in the form of a nude Venus
. For Plato – and so for the members of the Florentine Platonic Academy – Venus had two aspects: she was an earthly goddess who aroused humans to physical love or she was a heavenly goddess who inspired intellectual love in them.
What does Venus mean in art?
After all, Venus is portrayed through art as
a representation of love, beauty, sex, desire, fertility, and lust
. Even though some pieces depict different parts of her, they all still depict Venus and all her characteristics through different media.
What makes Birth of Venus special?
This impressive mythological composition is centered on the introduction of the figure of the bare naked goddess Venus emerging from the shell drifting to Cyprus shore. It practically embodies the
rebirth of civilization
, a new hope, geopolitical, social and cultural shift which occurred after the Middle Age turmoil.
Who posed for the birth of Venus?
Botticelli
painted the Birth of Venus between 1484-85. It was commissioned by a member of the Florentine Medici family, most likely Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco who was a distant cousin of Lorenzo the Magnificent.
How much does the birth of Venus cost?
The Birth of Venus is one of the most valuable paintings in the entire world it was bought by the Italian government for
500 million dollars
and hang at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence.
Who are the other figures in the birth of Venus?
The characters, moving from left to right, are
Zephyr, a nymph, possibly his wife Chloris, Venus and the Horae of Spring
, all of which are characters described in both accounts of the myth listed above.
Where is the original Birth of Venus painting?
The Birth of Venus or Nascita di Venere is a painting by Sandro Botticelli. It depicts the goddess Venus, having emerged from the sea as a full grown woman, arriving at the sea-shore (which is related to the Venus Anadyomene motif). The painting is held in
the Uffizi Gallery in Florence
.
What style of painting is the Birth of Venus?
As mythology paintings entered into
Renaissance art
, Botticelli broke new ground with his works, including the Birth of Venus. He was the first to create large scale mythology scenes, some based on historical accounts.
What medium is the birth of Venus?
Like Botticelli’s other masterpiece, Pallas and the Centaur, the Birth of Venus is painted on
canvas
– fairly unusual for its time – using a technique of thin tempera, based on the use of diluted egg yolk, which lends itself particularly well to give the painting that aspect of extraordinary transparency, which brings …
Who was the ugliest god?
Hephaestus
was the Greek god of fire, blacksmiths, craftsmen, and volcanoes. He lived in his own palace on Mount Olympus where he crafted tools for the other gods. He was known as a kind and hardworking god, but also had a limp and was considered ugly by the other gods.
Who is the god of Venus?
In Roman mythology, Venus was the
goddess of love, sex, beauty, and fertility
. She was the Roman counterpart to the Greek goddess Aphrodite. However, Roman Venus had many abilities beyond the Greek Aphrodite; she was a goddess of victory, fertility, and even prostitution.
Who did Venus fall in love with?
The story of Venus and
Adonis
is one such tale. Here’s how it goes: Venus, the goddess of love, fell for the handsome hunter Adonis. Adonis, who was a bit of a snob, believed he was the best hunter in the world and that nothing could ever happen to him. One day Venus dreamed that Adonis had an accident while hunting.
