Pudica pose
CI 101 : "the goddess had emerged from the waves, pressing her hair with her right hand, covering with the other her sweet mound of flesh"
The pudica pose was often used in Renaissance art to represent modesty as well as beauty and sensuality. Venus is the Greek goddess of love and sex which both validates the decision to use the pudica pose and also brings into question the modesty of the figure. Venus' hands do not fully cover her breasts which introduces the idea of temptation and desire that she often invokes.
Personification of wind
XCIX 99 "wafted to shore by playful zephyrs"; CI 100 "You would call... real the blowing wind"
The personification of the West Wind, named Zephyr in Latin literature, is a key figure in this painting. Zephyr's breathe is what directs Venus towards the shore in classic mythology, however, the first passage from Poliziano's writings mentions mulitple zephyrs as individual minions of the wind. Botticelli's deviation from the writing could have been an attempt to align more closely with the original tale than the source text for the painting.
Ethereal Venus
XCIX 99 "a young woman with nonhuman countenance" CI 101 "her sacred and divine step"
Polizano's reverent description of Venus arising from the water is mirrored in the techniques that Botticelli uses in his painting. Venus seems to be creating her own light source, illuminating the sea and the foam from which she emerged. The use of the adjective "nonhuman" emphasizes her goddess status.
The sea foam
XCIX 99 "wrapped in white foam" C 100 "You would call the foam real,"
In classic mythology, Venus is birthed from sea foam created from the castration of Kronos. The foam is superficially mentioned in Poliziano's Stanze but is not tangibly represented in Botticelli's work. The storminess of the Aegean Sea is depicted, however, creating a dark atmosphere from which love arises.
The nymph
CI 101 "she was received in the bosom of the three nymphs and cloaked in a starry garment" CII 102 "a garland, burning with gold and oriental gems"
The figure of Flora in the right side of the painting is shown holding up a garment for Venus to cover herself with, one adorned with lucious floral patterns. This depiction does not align perfectly with Poliziano's poetry, which includes three nymphs and lists garments and jewelry of incredible wealth. Instead, Botticelli has personified the spring, a season of rebirth, to welcome Veus' own birth into the world.
Summary
The context of this painting as a commission for the Medici family compared to the origin as a Greek/Roman myth excuses some deviation as modernistic technique and cultural standards of the Renaissance. However, Botticelli's choice to paint a mythological scene is inventive and rare in his time period. In an era where a majority of art was still religious, this secular piece helped to open the world of artists to areas untouched by modernity.
In Botticelli's Birth of Venus, details from classic Greek and Roman mythology are beautifully depicted. Because of the antique subject, interpretation is inevitable and has led to deviations from previous writing on the myth of the birth of Venus. Poliziano's Stanze illustrates her arrival in the conch shell, her journey encouraged by the wind, and her greeting from the nymph, although exact details do not align perfectly in Botticelli's work. His use of the pudica pose simultaneously conveys the modesty that was highly valued in the Renaissance and a sort of promiscuity in the incompleteness of the coverage.
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Created on November 17, 2024
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Transcript
Pudica pose
CI 101 : "the goddess had emerged from the waves, pressing her hair with her right hand, covering with the other her sweet mound of flesh"
The pudica pose was often used in Renaissance art to represent modesty as well as beauty and sensuality. Venus is the Greek goddess of love and sex which both validates the decision to use the pudica pose and also brings into question the modesty of the figure. Venus' hands do not fully cover her breasts which introduces the idea of temptation and desire that she often invokes.
Personification of wind
XCIX 99 "wafted to shore by playful zephyrs"; CI 100 "You would call... real the blowing wind"
The personification of the West Wind, named Zephyr in Latin literature, is a key figure in this painting. Zephyr's breathe is what directs Venus towards the shore in classic mythology, however, the first passage from Poliziano's writings mentions mulitple zephyrs as individual minions of the wind. Botticelli's deviation from the writing could have been an attempt to align more closely with the original tale than the source text for the painting.
Ethereal Venus
XCIX 99 "a young woman with nonhuman countenance" CI 101 "her sacred and divine step"
Polizano's reverent description of Venus arising from the water is mirrored in the techniques that Botticelli uses in his painting. Venus seems to be creating her own light source, illuminating the sea and the foam from which she emerged. The use of the adjective "nonhuman" emphasizes her goddess status.
The sea foam
XCIX 99 "wrapped in white foam" C 100 "You would call the foam real,"
In classic mythology, Venus is birthed from sea foam created from the castration of Kronos. The foam is superficially mentioned in Poliziano's Stanze but is not tangibly represented in Botticelli's work. The storminess of the Aegean Sea is depicted, however, creating a dark atmosphere from which love arises.
The nymph
CI 101 "she was received in the bosom of the three nymphs and cloaked in a starry garment" CII 102 "a garland, burning with gold and oriental gems"
The figure of Flora in the right side of the painting is shown holding up a garment for Venus to cover herself with, one adorned with lucious floral patterns. This depiction does not align perfectly with Poliziano's poetry, which includes three nymphs and lists garments and jewelry of incredible wealth. Instead, Botticelli has personified the spring, a season of rebirth, to welcome Veus' own birth into the world.
Summary
The context of this painting as a commission for the Medici family compared to the origin as a Greek/Roman myth excuses some deviation as modernistic technique and cultural standards of the Renaissance. However, Botticelli's choice to paint a mythological scene is inventive and rare in his time period. In an era where a majority of art was still religious, this secular piece helped to open the world of artists to areas untouched by modernity.
In Botticelli's Birth of Venus, details from classic Greek and Roman mythology are beautifully depicted. Because of the antique subject, interpretation is inevitable and has led to deviations from previous writing on the myth of the birth of Venus. Poliziano's Stanze illustrates her arrival in the conch shell, her journey encouraged by the wind, and her greeting from the nymph, although exact details do not align perfectly in Botticelli's work. His use of the pudica pose simultaneously conveys the modesty that was highly valued in the Renaissance and a sort of promiscuity in the incompleteness of the coverage.