The Roman goddess of love and beauty Venus, as well as her Greek "sister" Aphrodite, has been praised by poets, sculptors, and artists for many centuries. Myths about her have survived to the present day, like many works of art in which she invariably embodied the ideal of female beauty. And one of the most famous masterpieces dedicated to her, of course, is the "Birth of Venus" by Sandro Botticelli. So what do we know about this picture?
Botticelli to Venus
Not everyone knows about this, but the author of the famous painting was a man named Alessandro Filipepi. Botticelli, he became later, having received this nickname, translated from Italian meaning "barrel", after his elder brother, who was distinguished by a fair amount of weight. The future great painter was born in Florence in 1445 in the family of a tanner and at first he wanted to be a jeweler. However, after two years of studying with goldsmiths, the master chose to go to school with the artist Phillippo Lippi. He stayed in his workshop for five years before he left, and the young Sandro moved to Verrocchio.
A couple of years later, in 1470, he began independent work. Having opened his own workshop, the young man quickly gained popularity and recognition. Over the next decade, he acquired a large number of influential customers, among whom was the Medici family. At the same time, he was fond of the ideas of Neoplatonism, which had a significant impact on his work. Since the late 1470s, the fame of Botticelli went beyond Florence, and he went to Rome to work on the frescoes of the Sistine Chapel, which was only to become world famous thanks to another genius - Michelangelo. Before the appearance of labor of his whole life, only three years remained.
History of the painting
The Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli is deservedly considered a masterpiece of world painting. At the same time, this picture carries a lot of mysteries. To begin with, it is not known for certain who its customer is. Based on the fact that the canvas was stored in a villa in Castello near Florence, which was in the possession of Lorenzo di Pierfranchesko Medici, most art historians claim that it was he who paid for the work. According to other versions, initially the customer was a completely different person. Well, this picture, like Spring, which will be discussed later, came to the Medici later. Be that as it may, it is no longer possible to find documentary evidence of the one who originally commissioned the painting "Venus" by Botticelli.
Description
The painting is a canvas of about 2 by 3 meters, it is made of tempera paints on canvas. It depicts a young naked woman on the seashore, standing in the sink and symbolizing Venus. To her left are the gods of the winds, who apparently helped her to swim, and to her right is one of the Graces, hurrying towards her with a red robe to hide. Around Venus there are flowers (roses, anemones), under the reeds. Strictly speaking, this is not a birth, but rather the arrival of a goddess on earth.
Symbolism
“The Birth of Venus” is a painting by Botticelli, which is often cited as an example, talking about how skillfully artists weave hidden meaning into their canvases. It clearly shows the influence of the author of Neoplatonism - a teaching that combines some ideas of both Christianity and paganism. The following clearest characters are distinguished:
- The sink in which Venus stands is of the very shape that personifies the female bosom.
- The winds located on the left side of the picture (some still take them for angels), in the form of figures of a man and a woman, symbolize the unity of carnal and spiritual love.
- Ora Tallo (according to another version - one of the Graces) "was responsible" for the spring, namely at this time of the year the birth of the goddess takes place.
- Roses are a recognized symbol of love.
- Cornflowers on the grace's robe - the personification of fertility.
- The ivy and myrtle around her neck symbolize affection and fertility, respectively.
- Anemones at the feet of Grace are the flowers of the goddess Venus, according to myths, emerging from the tears that she shed, grieving after the death of her beloved Adonis.
- Bulrush is a symbol of modesty.
- The orange tree in the upper right corner is a sign of eternal life.
- And finally, the red royal mantle is the divine power that beauty grants.
As you can see, the symbolism of the painting "The Birth of Venus" by Sandro Botticelli contains enough. But what about the personality that has become the prototype of the main character of the canvas?
Model
The most likely candidate for the role of the goddess of love in this case is Simonetta Vespucci, who in the 1470s at the age of 16 came with her husband to Florence and immediately became her first beauty. Sandro probably knew her even before that - he talked quite closely with her family, because he lived with his parents in the next block. There is no genuine information about how close the artist and model were, but Botticelli’s creative experts believe that from the moment they met, all the Madonnas and Venus were written from her.
However, Simonetta was married, and in addition, many townspeople, including very influential ones, were her fans. One of them - Giuliano Medici, the younger brother of Lorenzo - was even considered her lover, although there is no evidence that his feelings were not platonic. It is possible that she simply remained a lady of his heart, as was then customary.
Simonetta could have inspired many more artists of her time with her beauty, but at the age of 23, in 1976, she died of consumption. Her death became grief for almost all of Florence.
“Venus” Botticelli appeared only 9 years after her death, and the goddess on her is so fresh and beautiful. The artist lived alone until the end of his life, never getting married. It seems that his only lover was Simonetta, who found her immortality in the famous canvas.
Location
Currently, the masterpiece is located in the same place where it was created - in Florence, in the Uffizi Gallery. As a rule, people crowd around the picture all the time, but sometimes you can still seize the moment to examine it thoroughly, both close and from afar.
Interesting Facts
- "Spring" and "Venus" Botticelli have the same model as the central figure, but they were written with an interval of 7 years.
- When creating the canvas, the artist used innovative techniques for his time - he crushed lapis lazuli to obtain blue paint, used canvas, not a board, added a minimal amount of fat to paints, and also covered the painting with egg yolk, so it has survived to this day in almost original form .
- In the proportions and posture of Venus, the influence of classical Greek sculpture is clearly traced, the canons of which were laid down by Praxiteles and Poliklet.
Cultural influence
The painting "Venus" by Botticelli is the first painting depicting a completely naked female figure, the plot of which is not dedicated to original sin. And she deservedly became the main masterpiece, singing beauty that does not need anything else. Against the background of the remaining works of the artist, having mainly religious themes, this plot seems strange. Nevertheless, perhaps without this “Venus” we would have lost many of the world's masterpieces, without which today it is simply impossible to imagine the history of art.
And today, "Venus" Botticelli continues to inspire artists, photographers, models. Numerous imitations are created, but the original, embodying the ideal of female beauty, can be only one.