The myth of Venus and Adonis was told by the ancient Roman poet Ovid in his Metamorphoses. Venus, the goddess of love, adored the handsome mortal Adonis. She cautioned him against the dangers of the hunt, but he ignored her warning and was killed by a wild boar. Venus granted Adonis a form of immortality by transforming his blood into anemones--fragile springtime flowers (seen here behind Venus) with a beauty as fleeting as his own.
In choosing to illustrate the fateful moment when Adonis departs for the chase with his hounds, Mignard followed the Italian painter Titian. Avoiding the emotive poses some Baroque painters would have used, Mignard carefully balanced and contained the interconnected gestures of the two poised figures. He represented the classicizing pole of 17th-century art: like the Renaissance painters he admired, he sought serenity even in tales of poignant feeling like this one.
Acquired in 1987 87.5
cxd
<P>The myth of Venus and Adonis was told by the ancient Roman poet Ovid in his Metamorphoses. Venus, the goddess of love, adored the handsome mortal Adonis. She cautioned him against the dangers of the hunt, but he ignored her warning and was killed by a wild boar. Venus granted Adonis a form of immortality by transforming his blood into anemones--fragile springtime flowers (seen here behind Venus) with a beauty as fleeting as his own.</P><P>In choosing to illustrate the fateful moment when Adonis departs for the chase with his hounds, Mignard followed the Italian painter Titian. Avoiding the emotive poses some Baroque painters would have used, Mignard carefully balanced and contained the interconnected gestures of the two poised figures. He represented the classicizing pole of 17th-century art: like the Renaissance painters he admired, he sought serenity even in tales of poignant feeling like this one.</P><P>Acquired in 1987 87.5</P>
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