Venus in Front of the Mirror

The subject of a young, naked woman with a mirror goes back to the pictorial tradition of the Venetian masters around 1500. The mirror motif allows various different interpretations: in connection with Venus it functions as an allegory of the visual faculty and of "prudential" or "providential", prudent foresight or wisdom deriving from self-reflection. As a counterweight to Cupid, a dark-skinned serving maid has been added on the right, her austere features providing a foil to the sensual appearance of Venus. Venus's reflection, revealing the beauty of her face to the viewer becomes a symbol... Mehr ...

Verfasser: Peter Paul Rubens
Dokumenttyp: Image
Schlagwörter: Painting / Baroque / 17th century / Flemish / goddess / goddesses / Venus / mirror / mirrors / nude / nudes / female figure / figures / allegory / allegories / vanity / vanitas
Sprache: unknown
Permalink: https://search.fid-benelux.de/Record/base-29062202
Datenquelle: BASE; Originalkatalog
Powered By: BASE
Link(s) : http://digital.libraries.psu.edu/cdm/ref/collection/arthist2/id/133802

The subject of a young, naked woman with a mirror goes back to the pictorial tradition of the Venetian masters around 1500. The mirror motif allows various different interpretations: in connection with Venus it functions as an allegory of the visual faculty and of "prudential" or "providential", prudent foresight or wisdom deriving from self-reflection. As a counterweight to Cupid, a dark-skinned serving maid has been added on the right, her austere features providing a foil to the sensual appearance of Venus. Venus's reflection, revealing the beauty of her face to the viewer becomes a symbol of painting itself. (http://www.liechtensteinmuseum.at)