72. Birth of Venus, Sandro Botticelli

Birth of Venus Sandro Brotticelli. c. 1484-1486 C.E. Florence, Italy. Tempera on canvas 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. In the era that Birth of Venus was painted, minds were open to new ideas and religion no longer needed to be the main subject of artistic work. If such mythological pieces had been painted 100 years earlier, they would not have been accepted by the church because they were so different to traditional depictions. Sandro Botticelli, The Birth of Venus, c.1482-6. Tempera on canvas, 5'8" x 9'1 5/8. Uffizi Gallery, Florence, Italy

Content: Venus (Roman goddess of love and romance)  Standing atop a white shell Golden hair, pale skin, entirely nude (but covering her lower body to incite modesty) Accompanied by an attendant with a cloth to cover her (far right) Zephyr and Aura, wind sprites, blowing wind from the far left

Context: The painting depicts Venus, the Roman goddess of love Images of nude women were only tolerated in two contexts: educational or mythological  This was the latter Painting her naked was a “radical statement”  Not in a Christian context, heading straight into the Renaissance movement

Form:   She stands almost casually (not contrapposto) Flexible, skeletal structure (her body) Lots of folds and lines that intersect with one another (waves, seashell, clothing)  Indicative of movement --> sourced at the two air spirits creating wind on the far left

Function:  Served a dual purpose Mythological and educational Artist reveled in his own creation

Other:

Gateways, p. 558

• "In ancient Greece, although the male nude was certainly more common, the female nude eventually began to gain respectability in the late fourth century BCE. Years later, during the Renaissance, such Italian artists as Sandro Botticelli (c. 1445-1510) revived the appearance of the female nude as it had been depicted in antiquity. In Botticelli's day the female nude became an acceptable subject as long as it appeared in a historical or mythological context. According to Classical mythology, Venus, the goddess of love and beauty, first emerged from the sea as a fully formed adult on a shell."
• "In his painting The Birth of Venus, Botticelli focuses on the moment when Venus has been blown to shore. She is wafted toward the land by Zephyr, the god of the west wind, who will wrap her in a blanket of flowers. Venus has smooth ivory-colored skin, long flowing hair, and an elegant post. She discreetly covers her nudity, indicating that chastity is part of her appeal. The graceful shape and the flawless quality of her body reflect the purity of the newborn goddess and create a harmonious and pleasing composition. Botticelli has modeled his figure on an ancient sculpture, thus basing his conception of beauty on Classical Greek standards."

Khanacademy video - https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/early-europe-and-colonial-americas/renaissance-art-europe-ap/v/botticelli-the-birth-of-venus-1483-85

Artable in-depth articles:

http://www.artble.com/artists/sandro_botticelli

http://www.artble.com/artists/sandro_botticelli/paintings/birth_of_venus