The Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli painted in tempera and gold on canvas was painted from 1484-1486 and is the painting I have chose to analyze from the southern renaissance. The painting depicts a nude Venus standing in a scallop shell on the sea shore. She is covering herself with both her hands and hair. There is also on the left side a wind Zephyr and some type of other angelic figure as well. On the right side of the painting is a devotee offering the center figure the Venus a blanket. I find this to be a very dynamic composition that is in no way static in composition of line, color or texture.
In the composition the figures themselves create a sense of energy and dynamic movement. The Venus herself at center is standing in a contrapposto pose and the line created with her body in the composition is that she is being actually moved by the wind. This is also depicted with her hair being blown off toward the devotee. The figure at right the devotee, appears to be leaning into this implied wind and consequently the blanket she is holding and her clothes are being blown to the right creating a beautiful diagonal line away from the Venus at center. The two figures at left are also angled away from the Venus but at a much more severe angle creating a dynamic visual composition that moves the eye from right to left. There are also plucked flowers that are surrounding the figures on the left side of the painting that offer some depth to the composition as well as help make the figure appear to be floating in mid air.
The color and texture applied to the image also add to the energy and dynamic aspect of the composition. The water in the image is blue and is shaded very dark at the bottom of the image giving a beautiful heavy weight to the bottom of the image. Over the top of the water is a beautiful white texture that implies the movement of the water. The texture is created with a large number of dynamic lines that vary in weight and texture adding to the sense of depth in the image. In conjunction with the texture of the water the figures in the image as well as the shell that the Venus is standing upon at center are all shaded and modeled in a way that gives the composition a better sense of depth and a feel that the figures and fabrics pictured are actually in motion.
The lines created by the feet of all the figures in the image are also strong examples of movement created in the image. The devotee figure at right appears to be twisting and moving toward the Venus at center. Her left foot is contorted in a way that makes her appear to be just on the verge of taking another step. In contrast the figures on the left side of the composition have their feet pointed in the same angle as their bodies as if to imply that they are in fact flying above the water. No weight is being carried by the feet of these figures. All of these things working together give the painting a very dynamic feel and a lot of energy.
The movement in this piece is very dynamic and energetic. Like you stayed, the movement of the hair, the movements of the tapestry’s on both sides of the Venus figure show this movement that, I believe, makes the piece enjoyable to look at. I think something else that also has a huge impact on the scene is the shadows created by the drapery with in the tapestries and the textures and patterns that were created. I think the shadows and the textures created add a lot of depth to the piece. I am glad you mentioned the positioning of the feet, that is something I never really looked at in the piece, but it does lead your eye right to the Venus figure and displays movement really well.
ReplyDeleteI agree that this piece is very enjoyable to look at and shows dramatic lighting situations and color. It is almost three completely different scenes but Botticelli dramatically connects the three using three separate characters. I am specifically drawn to the draperies of the nymph character as well, it's shadows and texture give the viewer an almost soothing feeling, while also drawing the eye left towards the rest of the piece.
ReplyDeleteSorry, I am unable to post comments directly on most people's blogs. But here is mine! I loved your post and the style in which you did the formal analyzes! I find there is so much going on in this picture, but the eye id definitely drawn to Venous. The description about the wind fits very well.
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