Venus of Urbino by Titian

The Venus of Urbino by Titian It constitutes an exceptional work of art both for the fascination it arouses in the viewer, and for how innovative it was in its time. The woman's pose, the way she represents him in a domestic setting, and the way in which she looks directly at the viewer are some of the characteristics that make this work a masterpiece, highly controversial and debated and influential in the work of authors such as Rubens, Matisse or Manet.

In this article from unPROFRESOR.com we offer you a comment on the Venus of Urbino by Titian so that you understand the work, its style and the history and curiosities that surround it. Join us to discover one of the most fascinating works of art in the history of Art!

Index

1. Description of The Venus of Urbino
2. Analysis of The Venus of Urbino
3. History of The Venus of Urbino by Titian
4. Curiosities of the Venus of Urbino

The Venus of Urbino

In the painting we have as the main figure a naked woman lying on a bed and supported by pillows and on red and white sheets. At her feet is a small dog sleeping, a symbol of fidelity, and in the background, there are two dressed women keeping something in some trunks and next to a window that shows a landscape.

The woman is located in a rich room, that of a palace or a luxury house and it is supposed that she would be a belle donne or beautiful woman and idealized by Venetian painting during the second half of the 16th century. An ideal of beauty inspired by the verses of Petrarch and the Neoplatonic doctrines of Marsilio Ficino and that vindicate love as the search for beauty.

The difference of this Venus by Titian is that while painters like Giorgione paint an idealized sleeping Venus, this painter represents a more carnal Venus and full of eroticism. Titian's Venus presents all the stereotypes of renaissance beauty: white skin without blemishes, blond hair, jeweled and carefully styled hair. She looks at the viewer looking for her complicity and her admiration.

The other two women appear to be her servants and she may be an enriched courtesan, beautiful and admired for her beauty and training. According to some specialists, the woman could also be the wife of the son of the Duke of Urbino and it would be a painting thought so that its owner would have it in a hidden place where he could contemplate it alone and enjoy the sensuality of the construction site.

We are going to analyze the technique of The Venus of Urbino of Titian and know all the aspects that make up this work of art, essential in our cultural history.

Issue

Titian is traditionally considered to have performed this custom painting of an anonymous patron or by Guidobaldo della Rovere, future Duke of Urbino, as part of the celebration of his betrothal and a way of being able to contemplate the naked young Venus, perhaps her wife Giulia Varano, as a kind of allegory of marriage, with fidelity and eroticism as the keys to her success. Thus, the Venus represented is a modest Venus who covers her sex with her hand and shows the rest of her voluptuous body naked and in a room semi-enclosed by a wall. recreates a intimate scene in which only the woman and the spectator participate, representing the maids with their backs to the action.

The young woman also adorns herself with jewelry such as a bracelet and luxurious earrings, in addition to holding a small bouquet of roses in her hand, symbol of femininity and love. Other characteristics that reinforce the idea that it could be a bridal painting is that the trunk or chest is of the bridal type and in the landscape you can see a myrtle plant, symbol of fertility, fidelity and Venus. The figure of the dog results in that fidelity. The scene takes place in the luxurious interior of a palace decorated with luxury furniture and textiles, with a summer landscape, a sunset in the city of Venice.

style of The Venus of Urbino

This painting by Titian follows the Venetian painting style and it shows a composition in which the scene is divided into two planes: a close-up in in which the protagonist is Venus and a background in which the two servants and the area of ​​the window. The curtain and the wall are the two elements that act as dividers.

perspective of The Venus of Urbino

The table is arranged in wavy and dynamic lines compensated with more static verticals and horizontals. Perspective helps us to situate the woman in a room with a background in which a window opens and It allows light to enter and highlights the figure of a woman on white sheets on a dark background even more. The tiles add depth, something that continues with the window, the landscape and the light that enters through it. The young woman's body is modeled softly, providing sensuality and warmth against the cold colors of the wall and the curtain. Everything is ordered in a harmonious way in a warm foreground and a cold one.

In the painting, the importance of drawing still prevails over color, a characteristic that will end up being reversed, Color reached more preponderance to the point of considering Titian as a precursor of color. Impressionism.

On the other hand, and following the style of the venetian school, the secondary elements such as furniture, plants or other ornamentation acquire enormous importance, thus forming part of the whole scene.

The painting dates from the first half of the century XVI, a moment of certain economic prosperity for Venice despite the fall of Constantinople and a slump in trade. The venetian school he was characterized by turning the landscape into the protagonist of many of his works, using light and color as the main tools compared to the preponderance of drawing and the line of the school florentine. The color is applied directly and is nuanced by using light to mark whether we are facing daylight or night and create atmospheres full of refinement.

As we have already noted, the Venus of Urbino, dated between 1534 and sold in 1538, was acquired by the son of the Count of Urbino and is considered as one of the masterpieces of eroticism in art. The Count of Urbino, Francesco Maria della Rovere, was a mercenary general familiar with Pope Julius II and commander of the Florentine armies, being commander of the land forces of Venice from 1523.

Francesco met Titian in 1530 during the coronation of Charles V and commissioned two portraits of himself and his wife. It is pointed out that the Venus could be a anonymous commission which was never sold and which was acquired by the count's son when he fell in love with it.

This exceptional work provokes the controversy in many spectators when considering it an uncomfortable work due to its final objective: a erotic, almost pornographic work that has a tint voyeuristic. In addition, the suggestive way in which the viewer looks suggests that the painter and the model could even have a relationship beyond the merely artistic.

Another of the curiosities is that this work was most innovative by representing the image of a goddess in a domestic and contemporary landscape, far from the idyllic settings of the classic works. To which must be added the fact that the protagonist can be a courtesan, cultured and beautiful women who abounded in the city of Venice, counting some 12,000 courtly women. Some women who led a life of luxury and passion and who sometimes came to amass great fortunes.

If you want to read more articles similar to Titian's Venus of Urbino: Commentary, we recommend that you enter our category of History.

• PANOFSKY, Erwin. Titian. Akal Editions, 2003.
• PEREZ, Xose Aviñoa. The prying eye. About Titian's Venus d'Urbino. Matèria: d'art magazine, 2003, p. 85-85.
• RUIZ, Maria Luisa Abao. Venus in Art. In Art Monographs 2001-2002. University of Seville, 2002. p. 1.
• Val, Alexandra. Images in context: genealogy, social representation and pictorial imaginary of the female body. Aisthesis, 2011, no 49, p. 53-66.