Beauty And Eroticism In Titian's Venus Of Urbino

Peter Paul Rubens’ masterpiece, Venus and Adonis, is not only a significant artwork of the baroque-period in Europe during the seventeenth century, but it also tells the mythological story that begins with love, and ends in tragedy. Displayed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, this painting is admired for representing the unique baroque-style of this era, as well as Rubens’ particular use of the medium and how it reaches those who are viewing it. His attention to detail and crafty use of symbolism within the painting assist viewers in deciphering the story, along with the values of the period in which Rubens was living. In studying the composition of the work and noting the historical context from which it came, one can ultimately

The question of beauty has been asked since the beginning of time and yet there is still no precise answer. When discussing this same question and applying it to works of art a number of answers could be as large as the population. Henri Matisse and Francis Bacon have both inspired artists for generations and are considered to be opposite sides of the coin. Matisse created paintings with bright, happy colors mixing in patterns and showed life as it was viewed from the outside, leading to the idea that he created pretty paintings. On the other hand, Bacon produced intense paintings which included rich, dark colors that expressed the agony that can only be viewed from within oneself. When the viewer immerses themselves in both styles of painting it will be clear that art does not need to “be pretty”.

And it is for that reason the painting received so much criticism. It was too real. The nude woman in the painting was not an idealized mystical subject like the woman in Titian’s Venus of Urbino anymore, but it was based on a real woman, Victorine Meurent. The reality of the piece brought all the harsh criticism onto itself, because it raised a lot of issues regarding prostitution and women’s place and roles in the French society. Another reason the painting shocked the crowd other than the realness of it is its style, how it was painted. Olympia was painted roughly with clear brushstrokes, poor details (everything was also very flat), and stark value

The main focus of the painting intended by Titian is a nude woman, Venus, looking straightforwardly at the audience. The young woman’s nipples are erect; with her left hand covers her pubic area, the sexuality of this painting is unquestionable. She is completely naked except for the ring on her little finger and the bracelet around her wrist. It is clear that the intention of this painting is to evoke sensual feelings in its audience.

The piece introduces a moment of ecstasy created through an event of sexual tension. The strong presence in the figure begins to depict the emotions of the facial features in which is expressed through painted textures committing a exotic tension in the structure of Europa’s appearance. Emphasizing the emotion in the figure, Titian begins to express the sentiment through the creation of a dramatic presence. First with the colour scheme, he draw the attention to the figure with a light foreshadowing directly to Europa’s body accentuating the dramatization in the expression of the face. The appearance of the tense emotion conveys the illusion of fear, pain and distress causing a confusion of what seems to appear as sexual violence. According to A.W.Eaton the facial expression consists of exotic pleasure rather than an appearance devoted to despair and I quote “First, the painting eroticizes Europa’s rape by representing her as complicit and taking pleasure in the act. For instance, Europa’s facial expression does not obviously betray distress, fear, or pain, and is often interpreted as a look of ecstasy”(Eaton, P.162). Furthermore this quote explains that rather the expression interpreted from Europa was a moment of rapture or moreover an execution of enjoyment towards

Reclining nude female is a common subject matter in art history since the Venetian Renaissance, Titian’s Venus of Urbino painted in 1538 is one of the earliest reclining nude female in painting history. It described a beautiful young female laying on her bed with her sleeping dog, on the back ground is her maids looking for cloth or her in the cassone. Manet’s Olympia that painted in 1865 is a painting with a similar composition, A nude young female who was suggested a prostitute, behind her is her black female maid holding a big bouquet of flower which is possibly from her customer. On the same part of the composition, there is an animal as well, but this time it is a cat. Titian and Manet’s reclining nude female have a same composition and subject matter, however They are very different in art history, both stylistically and culturally.

It portrayed the woman as being the care giver of life, and it showed her as something everyone looked up to, either for riturals or as a figurine of fertility. She may have been the Goddess of life; a status similar to “Mother Earth.”. However, I believe that the purpose of ti was to show woman what their capabilities were, and it seemed to focus on the strengths that they possessed and what their functions in society were. In this case, the large breasts, stomach, and hips (Selen). It potentially was used to symbolize new life, or maybe even a new beginning. Now if you focus on this statuette you will notice that it’s roughly only about 4 inches long. The statuette is named the “Venus of Willendorf” after Willendorf, Austria, where she was found, and the name “Venus” was named after the ancient Roman Goddess of Love

I have chosen a famous oil on canvas painting: Venus and Cupid by Lorenzo Lotto made around the fifteenth and sixteenth century during the Italian Renaissance period. Overall, this piece is extremely intriguing to me, I cannot imagine how the artist created it with such detail and precision. Overall, this painting has this happy and positive mood, but it is also makes me curious as to what this painting is about. It also gives me this feeling to smile for Cupid and Venus in the painting, rather than with them, as there faces are conveyed as being happy together. Its colors similarly, just like the overall painting, has this beautiful bright and cheery color that seem to suit Venus and Cupid well.

The visual work I have chosen is the Bith of Venus and is one of the world’s most famous works of art. Painted by Sandro Botticelli between 1482 and 1485, it is the first example of painting on canvas. The written work I have chosen is the Stanze per la Giostra. It was written by Angelo Poliziano, written between 1475-8. Both works are examples from the Italian Renaissance era, during the Medici rule, and share the theme of beauty and humanism. The works I've selected share the same subject matter, Venus, and is the perfect example of beauty and humanism. She is the epitome of beauty and her birth from the sea is an example of her metamorphosis of humanism. For this paper, I will compare both works then discuss how the shared theme is seen in contemporary works. How does Venus and her beautiful metamorphosis fit into contemporary forms of beauty and humanism?

Titian painted Venus and Adonis because of the tale called Ovid’s Metamorphoses. Basically, the tale was about the goddess Venus getting struck by cupid and her falling desperately in love with Adonis. Adonis, a hunter was leaving with his hunting dogs but the goddess Venus does not want him leaving. She foresees the hunt will be dangerous for him and tries very hard for Adonis not to leave. Titian grabbed the moment of the goddess Venus, giving of her warning, and Adonis’s death and basically painting the emotionally charged moment of Adonis’s departure for the hunt (Venice). The goddess Venus in this painting is portrayed as more of a frantic women rather than a dignified feminine ideal. Also the role is sort of reversed and the goddess Venus is portrayed more as masculine than feminine. Since she was struck by love so hard, she is depicted as sort of an aggressive women in

Consequently, many of the colors used in Titian’s Venus of Urbino rematerialize in numerous of Titian’s other works, for example the green in the curtain behind the young woman’s head. The green depicted was painted

Inspired by Giorgione, Titian’s Venus has a lot of similarities with Giorgione’s Venus. Similar to the sleeping Venus, Titan used curved and flowing lines to depict the beautiful figure of the female nude and as well the cloth underneath her. The shape is close or the same to Giorgione’s Venus: a nude women reclining on the mattress with her hand covered on her private. The light source is unknown too; it could be the natural light from a window or spot light from a lamp. Like the sleeping Venus, value

Concerning color, there is a stark contrast between the figure on the painting and the background. More specifically, the figure of the woman is predominantly delineated in white color, especially pale, ashen white, as far her apparel and facial complexion are concerned, while there are also various hues of grey, with respect to her hair and accessory feather. These white and grey shades are vividly contrasted with the prevailing red and crimson hues of the background (viz. the drape, armchair, and table). Moreover, one can detect colors of dark green (jewelry), some beige on the left (pillar), and darker or lighter shades of blue on the right side of the canvas (sky), which all in concert and in addition to the subtle purple hue forming the sun or moon exude a certain dramatic sentiment. Also, there is brown, which often easily segues into gold (viz. books and attire details respectively). The main contrast of colors between white and red would be interpreted as serving the purpose of rendering the figure of the woman, and especially her face, the focal point of the work, despite, paradoxically enough, the lush red shades at the background. Bearing that in mind, the significance of the woman’s face will be enlarged upon later, when discussing aspects of her identity.

The portrait is displayed horizontally with a gold trimmed frame. The subject is a female that looks to be in her early 20’s sitting upright on a large brown chair. If the viewer travels up the painting the first indication of the woman’s class is her satin, blue dress. The saturated blue shines and falls in the light like water. Paired with the dress are her exceptionally detailed endings to her sleeves. The lace is even painted as though it is translucent, allowing a little of the blue dress to show through the sleeve. Flowers throughout history have symbolized innocence of a woman and her virginity. The repeating theme of flowers, in the sleeve cuffs and ribbon) in the woman’s attired suggests her purity or innocent nature. Another very details section of the painting includes the corset/torso details. The sewing suggests texture in the torso with small beading in between. Towards the top of the chest in the center, the female seems to bear an extravagant, ribbon piece with a tear drop bead in the center. The light pink

The fixation is set on her in the center of the painting due to the triangle of light used to create a focal point for the viewer. Surrounding her on both sides are the linear equivelants of past and future. From the left we see her creators helping her along with strength and the force of the wind. To the right we see her handmaiden ready to usher her into the world, where she will be clothed and no longer represent innocence. Both exhibit two very different forms of love and caring to Venus.