La nascita Venere, c. 1482
Sandro Botticelli
Italian, 1445-1510
Tempera on canvas
Uffizi, Florence
The picture features Botticelli's linear style emphasized by the soft continual contours and pastel colors. The subject matter is quite different from the Adoration of the Magi.
It's from the mythological birth of Venus from the sea, which had been fertilized by the severed genitals of Saturn. Botticelli turned the cruel myth into an image of grace and beauty, like the traditional Catholic Baptism.
Venus has arisen from the sea and barely stands on, rather than in a cockle shell, while the wind gods waft her to shore, where she will be immediately robed by a waiting Hour. She may be nude but hides her nakedness with her hands and long golden hair, which sweeps about her.
Atmospheric qualities are ignored, Botticelli is completely dependent on the delicacy of his line.
Botticelli is one of my favorite painters. I need to visit the Uffizi, once more to see this painting and others by Botticelli and Giotto.
952
La nascita Venere, c. 1482
Sandro Botticelli
Italian, 1445-1510
Tempera on canvas
Uffizi, Florence
The picture features Botticelli's linear style emphasized by the soft continual contours and pastel colors. The subject matter is quite different from the Adoration of the Magi.
It's from the mythological birth of Venus from the sea, which had been fertilized by the severed genitals of Saturn. Botticelli turned the cruel myth into an image of grace and beauty, like the traditional Catholic Baptism.
Venus has arisen from the sea and barely stands on, rather than in a cockle shell, while the wind gods waft her to shore, where she will be immediately robed by a waiting Hour. She may be nude but hides her nakedness with her hands and long golden hair, which sweeps about her.
Atmospheric qualities are ignored, Botticelli is completely dependent on the delicacy of his line.
Botticelli is one of my favorite painters. I need to visit the Uffizi, once more to see this painting and others by Botticelli and Giotto.
952