Venus and Adonis (Rubens)


In 1635, Peter Paul Rubens created Venus and Adonis, now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. He followed the mythological story in the Metamorphoses by Ovid, inspired from his love of classical literature and earlier depictions of this scene. This oil on canvas painting shows Venus accompanied by Cupid, embracing and pulling Adonis before he goes off to hunt. The artist uses specific colors, detail and strong contrast between light and dark in order to depict a dramatic and emotional scene. During this time, the mythological story of Venus and Adonis was popular in Renaissance and Baroque court art. Rubens was clearly inspired by the many depictions of this scene already made, in particular the famous Titian composition of the same name, of which there are numerous versions. This depicts the same moment of Adonis leaving Venus to hunt, despite her pleas to stay; he will be killed later in the day.

Rubens

Born in 1577 in Siegen, Peter Paul Rubens is considered one of the most influential Baroque artists, especially in Flemish Baroque tradition. During the early 1600s, Rubens was employed and patroned by Vicenco I Gonzaga. Working for Gonzoga allowed Rubens to travel all throughout southern Europe and gain knowledge and inspiration from high Renaissance and Baroque artists. This helped him develop his own artistic style. While in Madrid in 1628, Rubens produced a copy of Titian’s work and used it as influence for his piece.

Location

Rubens’s Venus and Adonis was most likely painted as decoration for a large country house. The first records of the painting’s history were from the collection of the Elector of Bavaria, where it was held until 1706. In 1937, it was given to the Metropolitan Museum of Art by Harry Payne Bingham, who had loaned it to the Met since 1920. After this, the painting underwent major restoration as the museum removed discolored varnish and repaints, and displayed it like new. Once the cleaning was completed, art historians were able to narrow down the date, due to knowledge of Rubens’s styles during the 1600s. After this painting, Rubens created more depictions of this scene, one of which included Venus’s chariot and the two figures posed differently.

Description

It is a large canvas: almost 8 feet square with added strips. The scene depicts a tall and tan Adonis facing the opposite direction of the viewer but turned back facing his lover, Venus. The background of the painting alters throughout as the left side of the background is light, but the right side is very dark, having the two figures stand out with their respective dark and light skin. There are formal elements of both his Italian Renaissance influences and his Baroque artistic sensibility in the way Rubens depicts the popular mythological subject. For example, the bodies of these figures are very anatomically authentic and beautiful. Also, the moody lighting of the painting makes them glow and stand out, a dramatic tenebrism similar to the works of southern Baroque artists Titian and Caravaggio
Adonis is dressed in a bright red garment, making his figure stand out in front of all the other light and muted colors. The fabric has wrinkles and is very flowy, creating the sense of movement as he turns. His left foot is raised slightly above and behind the other, insinuating that he is about to take a step forward. While he is facing Venus, his gaze is not focused on her but is rather blank, as if he was preoccupied with something else. Unlike Titian’s work, Adonis is more focused on his hunt and the journey ahead, instead of Venus. Perhaps because this painting was intended for a country house, Rubens chose to emphasize Adonis’s role as a hunter. In order to emphasize this the artist includes Adonis’s hunting boots, a spear, and even the hunting dogs. The details on Adonis’s body are very realistic and natural. For example, the artist includes his curved spine as he turned, along with prominent lines, highlighting the muscles being used to turn. Rubens focus on Adonis’s muscles and the large spear he holds, emphasize his strong masculinity and power.
On Adonis’s right, Venus clings to him as she pulls him down. According to the narrative, she knows he is about to get killed and pleads to make him stay. Her face reads distress and sorrow as she looks straight at Adonis. Like Titian’s depiction, she is mostly nude but has a sheer white cloth that hangs out in between her legs. Rubens includes this as well as her full figured, curved body in order to represent innocence and fertility as most depictions of Venus do. The light and dark shadows on her body show movement as well as a realistic body complexion. For example, her stomach is long and stretched along with her left anatomical leg, showing her hopelessly reach out to Adonis. Her skin, like Cupid’s, is very bright and fair, making them stand out from the rest of the painting. This contrasts with Adonis’s tan skin and the flowing dark cloth and trees in her background. This choice of skin color, along with nudity, was made in order for her and Cupid to glow and look angelic or god-like. Also, the resemblance between the two is to highlight the mother and son relationship from this myth. Cupid clings to Adonis’ right leg, looking up to him and also pleading for him to stay.
On the ground, in between Cupid and Venus, are Cupid’s arrows. This serves as reminder to the viewer that Venus fell for Adonis as a result of being pricked by the arrows, as it happens in the narrative. In the background there are two of Adonis’s hunting dogs waiting for him, unaware of the tense scene and ready to keep walking with him. The trees and ground are dim and there is a slight dark and opaque border around the paining, contrasting with the figures in order to make the dramatic scene stand out even more. It is important to point out that the figures seem as if they are jumping out from the frame. The color of the sky is also very muted and plain for this effect.