The Birth of Venus (1)

The Birth of Venus is a renowned painting by the Italian artist, Sandro Botticelli. It portrays the goddess Venus emerging from the sea, fully grown, after her birth. The artwork is housed in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy. It is often discussed alongside Botticelli's other large mythological painting, the Primavera, also located in the Uffizi Gallery. Both paintings are well-known worldwide and are symbols of the Italian Renaissance. However, the Birth of Venus is more famous than the Primavera.

The Birth of Venus and Primavera are significant because they depict subjects from classical mythology on a grand scale, a feat that had not been seen in Western art since classical times. Additionally, the Birth of Venus features a prominent, nude female figure, which was also unprecedented. It was previously believed that the two paintings were commissioned by the same member of the Medici family, but this is now uncertain.

Art historians have extensively analyzed the Birth of Venus and the Primavera, exploring themes such as the emulation of ancient painters, the context of wedding celebrations, and the influence of Renaissance Neo-Platonism. However, there is no consensus on the identity of the commissioners. While there are nuances in the Birth of Venus, its main message is a straightforward interpretation of a traditional Greek myth, and its appeal lies in its sensory and accessible nature, which contributes to its widespread popularity.

In the center of the painting, Venus, the newly born goddess, is depicted standing naked inside a giant scallop shell. The shell is purely imaginary and is also a common element in classical depictions of Venus. On the left, Zephyr, the god of wind, blows towards Venus, while a young female, also with wings, blows less forcefully. Both figures are shown in the air. Vasari identified the young female as Aura, the personification of a gentle breeze. The combined efforts of Zephyr and Aura blow Venus towards the shore and cause the hair and clothes of the other figures to be blown to the right.

On the right, a female figure, possibly hovering slightly above the ground, holds out a rich cloak or dress to cover Venus when she reaches the shore. The figure is one of the three Horae, Greek minor goddesses of the seasons and of other divisions of time, and attendants of Venus. The floral decoration on her dress suggests that she is the Hora of Spring.

There are alternative identifications for the two secondary female figures, including those found in the Primavera. The nymph held by Zephyr may be Chloris, a flower nymph who is married to Zephyr in some versions of the story, and the figure on land may be Flora. Flora is generally the Roman equivalent of the Greek Chloris, and in the Primavera, Chloris is transformed into the figure of Flora next to her, following Ovid's Fasti. However, it is difficult to see this transformation in the Birth of Venus. The roses blown along with the two flying figures would be appropriate for Chloris.

The actual subject of the painting is not the "Birth of Venus," a title given to the painting in the 19th century (though Vasari referred to it as such), but rather the next scene in Venus' story, where she arrives on land, blown by the wind. The land depicted in the painting is likely either Cythera or Cyprus, both Mediterranean islands that were considered territories of Venus by the Greeks.

The Birth of Venus is slightly smaller than the Primavera and is painted on canvas, rather than on panel as was typical for Botticelli. Canvas was becoming increasingly popular for secular paintings, especially for those intended for country villas, which were decorated more simply and inexpensively than those for city palazzi. The painting is created on two pieces of canvas that have been sewn together, with a blue-tinted gesso ground. There are some differences in Botticelli's usual techniques, such as the lack of a green layer under the flesh areas, and there are also several pentimenti visible through modern scientific testing. The Hora originally had "low classical sandals" and the collar on the mantle she holds out was added later. The hair of Venus and the flying couple was also modified. The painting features heavy use of gold as a highlight pigment on hair, wings, textiles, the shell, and the landscape. This was all apparently applied after the painting was framed and was finished with a "cool gray varnish," likely using egg yolk.

Like in the Primavera, the green pigment used for the wings of Zephyr, Zephyr's companion, and the leaves of the orange trees on the land has darkened significantly due to exposure to light over time, altering the intended balance of colors. The blues of the sea and sky have also lost their vibrancy. Parts of some leaves at the top right corner, which are normally covered by the frame, have been less affected.

Although Venus' pose is classical in some ways, with the position of her hands borrowed from the Venus Pudica type in Greco-Roman sculptures, her overall treatment is more reminiscent of Gothic art. Venus' body has an elongated neck and torso and is anatomically improbable. Her pose is also impossible, as although she stands in a classical contrapposto stance, her weight is shifted too far over the left leg for the pose to be held. The proportions and poses of the winds on the left do not make sense and none of the figures cast shadows. The painting depicts a world of the imagination rather than striving for realistic depiction.

Ignoring the size and positioning of the wings and limbs of the flying pair on the left, which have been criticized by some, Kenneth Clark describes them as "perhaps the most beautiful example of ecstatic movement in the whole of painting." He notes that the intricate rhythms of the drapery flow around the nude figures and sustain the current of movement, which ultimately flickers down their legs and is dispersed like an electric charge.

Botticelli's art was never fully committed to naturalism, and he rarely gave weight and volume to his figures or used deep perspectival space. This is particularly evident in the Birth of Venus, as the landscape background is not realistically detailed. The laurel trees and grass below them are painted with green and gold highlights, and most of the waves are regular patterns. The landscape seems out of scale with the figures and the clumps of bulrushes in the left foreground are out of place, as they belong to a freshwater species.