Venus in Art: Carracci, Titian, Rubens, and Velázquez
Venus with Satyr and Cupids, A. Carracci, 1588
It’s in Venice (influenced by Venetian masters). From a compositional point of view, the composition is Mannerist. The bed in the foreground, upon which Venus rests, supports this rotation; this way, the scene would continue into our space. A cut scene in the foreground, in the Mannerist style, allows us to focus on the naked body of Venus, also in the foreground. We begin to find those contradictions: mythological paintings often give them a moralizing tone to justify them. We are entering what will be, after the influence of the Venetian cardinals, a world where a figure in the foreground is completely naked to show us the sensuality of the female body, fully Venetian in this case. Let us see what he was seeing in Venice: a close-up naked body strongly hit by the spotlight. There is a contrast between the beauty of the naked body of Venus and the ugliness of the satyr in the background (light and dark). This figure is related to *Diana and Callisto* by Titian, 1556-1559, together with that of *Diana and Actaeon*, to be given to Philip II on the occasion of his marriage to Mary Tudor. So, libraries have remained in England, later to go to museums.
Other categories you might consider: the model is that of Correggio. We must also look at the hair, usually reflected in clear and braided ribbons, etc., where pearls and precious stones are introduced – a world of luxury. Importance is given to earrings, bracelets, ornaments, etc. The figures’ flesh is rendered realistically. The taste of the painter is always reflected. Their bodies are thick and natural.
Correggio’s Painting
Zeus has become a cloud and has taken the nymph Io. We see her naked in a position similar to what we have seen, and that could also serve as an example for Titian’s *Venus and Adonis*. Io’s body is also a real body.
Carracci’s figure is laid on a bed covered by a red silk tapestry. Titian routinely used red in his depictions of Venus, as it is the color that gives warmth. It is the way this human figure has more life. To give more light, she is wrapped in a white sheet, thus seeking light and life around the female body.
If you look at the work of Titian, you see the red with white. We must also take into account, in Titian’s work, a tapestry as a canopy that closes the scene; it is how to focus, the characteristic element of the Baroque. In addition, we see those two closed areas on the far sides, the horizon that marks the perspective.
In Carracci, we have a composition that could be closed. Nothing is out. Clutching his leg is another cupid who sticks out his tongue; it is the human or natural note that appears with the Venetians and is particularly widespread in the Baroque, and which connects with the audience by opening the composition. Succession planning: first diagonal plane of light, dark background, and a final, even darker one.
The figure of the satyr is also very naturalistic; he shows a cup of grapes that speaks of pleasures. The cup is embossed silver; these are artists who recreate the smallest detail.
The Toilet of Venus, A. Carracci, 1594
In connection with Titian, this is Venus *Prima* in treating the mirror. Titian’s painting is more Mannerist in composition. There is light behind. In the first Carracci, what calls attention is the body of Venus; it has nothing to do with the beauty of Venice, as we entered Rome from 1594 to 1595. Mannerist painting had become official. Arriving in Rome meant encountering another kind of painting to which he had to adapt. The following figures remain Venetian. But the figure of Venus is Roman: a tiny head, a gigantic body, out of all proportion because it is within the canon of Mannerism. Furthermore, the body is male; it has no such sharp curves, is drier and harder. It is another aesthetic. In Rome, it was more difficult to use natural models, so he used young children. The light is much colder; the bottom is night. The skyline is seen through a very white light. The fabric is blue, it is cold; in addition to striking hard, the light on the white goddess, the smell of focus, makes it even cooler. It is the moment when the goddess is looking in the mirror. We see Cupid in the foreground playing with the jewels of Venus, which has been in Venice. In the foreground, he placed a box out of which the child takes necklaces. The pearl is something that always communicates with Venice. We are what makes the picture most human and natural. Venus’s body makes a diagonal counter-run, which is the opposite direction that leads us to the bottom.
Titian influenced Carracci on one hand, and also Rubens. The latter, between 1600 and 1612, makes a copy of Titian’s painting but with his wife. If you look, her figure is identical; she leads the ring on his finger, the hair on the left shoulder, the pearl, and fabrics. It includes a shirt that gives a glow of white. Women of white flesh. Very blonde lips. See how he uses the red velvet and then puts that touch of life in the figures. The Mannerist composition is identical to that of Titian. In both, we see how the figure in the mirror reflects just the part that the viewer does not see.
The Toilet of Venus, Rubens, 1612-1615
The figure *de espalda*, 1612, 1616. Figures of voluptuous flesh. Blonde, on one hand, falling within the taste of Venice. In this chaos, Eros is a teenager, and teenagers reminiscent of Correggio, Parmigianino, etc. We see the winged figure of the maid, black.
Velázquez, The Rokeby Venus
The entire body, a new interpretation. Following the Venus of Titian, as the bed comes in the foreground, blue cover, cold but with a red curtain that reflects more light and illuminates the face reflected in the mirror. The light hits her body and the curtain.