Essay Venus of Willendorf

The Venus of Willendorf can be a considered a landmark of the Paleolithic Era for various reasons. For one, it is not native to its land. It is unknown as to where it was originally created. Whenever it was found in 1908 researchers discovered that the statue was made of a type of limestone that was not native to that area, which led them to conclude that it had been brought to that particular area. Secondly, some experts believe that the statue gives a clear indication of what the people of that time worshiped. Some researches found that many people during the time worshiped the Venus of Willendorf as a fertility goddess.

The style of the Venus of Willendorf is appropriate for her time period because most early pre-historic art consists of small figurines of nude women with little or no emphasis on facial features, which are exactly the characteristics of the Venus of Willendorf.

Venus of Urbino illustrates a young woman, Venus, lying nude on what appears to be a reclined couch or bed. However, the woman depicted means much more than merely a nude woman. There have been many interpretations of this beautiful woman over the years but many art historians agree that the Venus of Urbino has to do unambiguously with the male sexual desire for the female nude body.

The love of marriage is shown in the small myrtle flower lying beside Venus, the flower petals and shell above her head are both said to be in connection to marriage. What's also very important to the painting is the way the bodies are positioned and what they are doing. Venus lying down placing her hand amongst her chest, this further resembles the institution of marriage in partnership and brings forth desire. Cupid on the other hand, which I was curious about, is peeing in Venus’s direction, through an ivy plant which is mentioned to represent fertility. On the Museums website this act along with the veil, crown, and pearl earrings, represent fertility referenced by “Italian Venetians”. What I found most interesting about this painting is the tiny snake near Venus. Why is it there? Especially in a painting that resembles marriage. The museum website mentions that this snake reveals the “darker aspect” of marriage. That is, “illicit”, not approved of. I also wondered about the rod that lies near Venus, and the website does say that it is most likely used to discipline Cupid. Nevertheless, the meaning of the painting is marriage as a happy institution, the museum also mentions that the message of “epithalamia” is conveyed as necessary, and that marriage is something everyone must do, and experience, and that this is in our nature to do so. Which explains the very natural

The statue is a Roman reproduction of a Greek work. It shows Venus, the goddess of love, standing bare-breasted and clutching a piece of cloth draped around her hips. At her feet, there is a dolphin that, practically, adds support to the piece and artistically makes an allusion to Venus's birth from the sea. As the notes from the Getty Museum explain, the statue is derived from a very popular Greek statue created by the sculptor Praxiteles around 350 B.C. The statue was so popular that it was copied by many artists.

An overweight female might have conceived more easily tens of thousands of years ago than an undernourished female. Therefore, being fat would be more desirable if trying to reproduce. Another factor that supports Witcombe's belief the sculpture was used for fertility purposes is the attention paid to the pubic area. The genital area is deliberately exposed and when the figurine was discovered, it still had a small trace of a red pigment visible. This detail brings Witcombe to suggest that the figurine's fertility role may have also served in a gynecological fashion as a good luck talisman to aid in conception or childbirth. If this assumption is true, then Witcombe believes that the image was carved by a female, since males would have less concern over such matters.

The sculptures and paint show details how society viewed and interpreted women body, sexuality, and maternity. In addition, revealed that these women were protected from threats around them with ornaments. Civilizations since early times, believed that we were in permanent threat from forces we do not see or cannot explain and because of it, we protected ourselves with artificial elements in a form of jewelry, crowns or caps. This idea has been continue from one generation to the next to the point that in modern societies some of us still use this type of protection in our bodies (e.g., small cross, divine images, tattoos, etc.).These pieces of art also indicate that humans believed in gods with superpowers and they are looking over us constantly. Humanity also believes in dark forces or demons trying to makes us do things that would upset the good gods. Some of the differences between these sculptures and paint are the material in which each one of them were created. The first figure, the Woman of Willendorf was carved in limestone, the second piece, the portrait of Queen Tiye was carved in wood and the last piece, the Virgin and Child Icon was created of tempera on a wood. You can also notice how the details on their faces and bodies changes throughout the time and years. The woman of Willendorf figurine offers details of a voluptuous nude women’s body but there is not face, or feet. Queen Tiye statue shows the face of a woman in detail closed to the gods but without any body parts and lastly The Virgin and Child Icon, is an expression of divinity of the views, reflections and beliefs from the gospel. Because communities started to innovate on the art of carving and painting, populations began to discover and/or create art with the objective of expressing different purposes of our daily lives, such as the beauty of a woman’s body, or to commemorate an ancient

In some cultures, people believe that art, magic and rituals will promote fertility. Some believe that an object, such as a statue, could contain the power of fertility. One example would be the Venus of Willendorf. Venus was a name given to female figurines and was thought to be a goddess. This figure is small enough to fit in the palm of your hand and looks like an obese woman. The roundness of her body could suggest that she has had multiple children, being very fertile. Another example is The Figure of a Deity. This is a male statue that has his many children clinging to his entire body. This is to say he is a very fertile male. There are many rituals that relate to sex and fertility and having lots of children and a large family

Venus of adonis was painted by Tiziano Vecellio and dates back to A.D 1400-1600. He was one of the greatest italian renaissance painter and he was recognized as a great painter early in his life. He was a master of the oil medium and a supreme colorist. Many of his paintings represent either religion, antiquity and/or beauty. In his painting of Venus and Adonis it was inspired by a tale called Ovid’s Metamorphoses and therefore was called poetry in paint, also known as poesie (The MET). The painting portrays the goddess Venus has fallen in love with Adonis. The goddess Venus is trying to hold back Adonis because she does not want him leaving, since he is a hunter. While the goddess Venus is trying to hold Adonis back, his dogs are

Venus of Urbino demonstrates a beautiful, young woman, Venus, lying nude on what appears to be a reclined couch or bed. However, the woman illustrated means much more than merely a nude woman. There have been many interpretations of this beautiful woman over the years but many art historians agree that the Venus of Urbino has to do unambiguously with the male sexual desire for the female nude body.

Our readings suggest that a fuller figure is not only suggestive of childbearing and fertility but also could represent a "image of beauty in a cold, hostile world where having body fat might have made the difference survival and death"(Sayre,2016, pg.6) Its ironic how body image differs in cultures and society. The Woman seated between two felines figurine; Sir James Mellaart believed that she represented Fertility or Mother Goddess.he concluded that village of Catalhoyuk was matrilineal based on his discovery of a number of female figurines found.As you stated Venus of Willendorf can be interpreted differently by every person as history in general. One could state that due to the fact that Homo sapiens are hunter-gathers and meat was the

Florence, Italy. He left Florence in 1480 to help decorate the Sistine Chapel in Rome with some of his art which only the most famous painters of that time were invited to do. In 1482, Botticelli returned to Florence and shortly

Artemisia Gentileschi, Venus and Cupid, ca. 1625-30. Oil on canvas, 38 x 56 5/6 inches. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, VA.

While the human form has always been acceptable in art, the nude female form continues to stir

This was modeled after the Virgin Mary whose round belly contained the savior (Yalom, 1997, p. 40). It wasn't until the fourteenth century and the Renaissance that this began to change. Explosive creativity and art occurred despite great famine and disease. As people became more frolicsome, clothing became more revealing. Such clothing including lowering the neckline to show cleavage (Latteire, 1998, p. 31). In the seventeenth century, the breasts once again became the center of female attractiveness over the belly. The breast stood as a symbol of power and wealth at a time when mercantilism was on the rise in Europe (Latteire, 1998, p. 32). The corset, which was previously used to flatten the breasts, was used to push in the stomach and push up the breasts (Winston, Website). Louis XIV of France's personal taste was a factor in this, as he demanded lower necklines for all the court women. He considered it a sign of respect to