Venus Compared Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Venus Compared - Term Paper ExampleThe ancient Greeks used it as a means of worship, honoring their gods and goddesses with as perfect representations as they could create. acquire that tradition from the Greeks, the Romans developed an artistic approach that would both honor their gods and commemorate cultural and individual achievements. It was here that the figure of Venus first came to life simply to be subsumed by the Middle Ages and reborn in the light of the Renaissance which has itself been reflected in later periods. Even as the figure of the goddess herself remains relatively kindred in terms of subject matter and context, depictions of Venus from the ancient period through the Renaissance and into the more modern age demonstrate vastly contrasting approaches to the concept of female perfection. Such differences are easy to see when comparing the ancient Capitoline Venus (second century BC) with the famous Renaissance word picture of her in Botticellis painting Birth o f Venus (1485) and the Boteros contemporary statue of her in the form of the Broadgate Venus (1989). The Capitoline Venus is a marble statue created during the Roman era, probably during the 2nd century BC. The statue presents a truly lifelike woman as she shyly prepares to step into a bath. She folds into herself a little bit, which is different from many of the opposite statues of the time which stood boldly nude and upright. intimately of her weight is carried on one foot with her hips and shoulders twisted a bit in a counterpose position. Her shoulders curve in toward her chest and her upper system seems to hover over her lower body, as if she is attempting to protect it from prying eyes. This impression is heightened by her arms which fold inward with an obvious attempt at applications programme her breasts and pubic area even though she doesnt actually touch her body. Her pose suggests moderateness and chastity, both characteristics she protects (Guerber, 1990). However, she is not the vision of perfection one might imagine. Her modesty in covering her breasts with her hand only serves to emphasize them, while her head turns shyly to one side. However, the beauty of her body is impaired by the too braggy head weighed down by the hair and the common facial features (Morton, 1990, p. 366). The beauty of her body suggests her divine nature as something worthy of worship while her pose, particularly as compared to other statues of the time, suggests her function however, the not-so-perfect head may also be a reflection of the Romans understanding that their gods and goddesses were not perfect. They had their own flaws, petty jealousies, and other weaknesses. The way of life this statue is made thus reflects the cultural beliefs in which it was made. Goddesses might be divine and have a degree of perfection well beyond the ability of average women, but they still had their modesty, they still moved like mortal women, and they still had their own sma ll flaws that got in the way. The period between the fall of Rome and the leap of the Renaissance saw very little art celebrating goddesses of any kind, so it isnt until the Renaissance that Venus was able to reemerge into the art world. When she did, she did so in a macro way. Understood broadly as the goddess of love, Venus was reborn in statues and paintings throughout Italy with perhaps one of the most famous portrayals performed by Botticelli. While she had appeared in other works before him, Boticelli made a splash with his Birth of Venus (1485). In this image, Venus is again portrayed in the nude as she had been in ancient art, which was breaking the rules of the time as only divinities (Jesus, Mary, and the saints) were accepted when depicted nude. He did draw a line, though, in determining