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Analysis Of The Birth Of Venus By Sandro Botticelli

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The Birth of Venus was painted by one of the greatest renaissance artists, Sandro Botticelli. In the mid 1480s, Botticelli painted The Birth of Venus for one member of the Medici family. Throughout the renaissance period, the Medici family ruled the city of Florence. They played a large part in patronizing the arts, humanism and political development of the city. The origins of the artwork were unclear. It was said that Botticelli was commissioned by Giuliano di Pero de’ Medici to commemorate his love for Simonetta Cattaneo Vespucci. Simonetta was a renowned beauty who lived at a small coastal town, Portovenere. According to traditional accounts, the seas was said to have been the birthplace of Venus. In this mentioned painting, Botticelli …show more content…

There is a saying by Cennino Cennini, sometime before 1437, “for the use and profit of anyone who wants to enter this profession.” It simply means that it is easy to make and it is much cheaper than buying ready-made paints. Tempera medium is a mixture of an equal volume of pigment paste, eggs and some water. Unlike oil paint, which we have been taught how to paint with, tempera is water-based and non-toxic. It does not change in colour or turn transparent over time. There is no need to use toxic paint thinners or solvents. Tempera colours are clear, bright and pure. The time consumed to use this medium is more like that of oils since each layer need to set before continuing the painting later. However, it dries faster than oil paint does and are more likely to be permanent. To save the cost and the painting, artists often paint using tempera on wood …show more content…

When composing this artwork, Botticelli purposely placed Venus slightly to the right of the center so that no other figures overlap her, making her the center of attention. In an awkward contrapposto-like stance, she leans in and has her head slightly tilted. With Botticelli’s interest in the way women flaunt their long hair in the late fifteenth century, he focused Venus hair and hairstyle that somehow has an illusion that it is moving. Venus’s long golden hair sweeps gracefully about her with the use of gold which was inspired by Donatello’s Penitent Magdelen. He then gave her a very idealized face where she is free from blemishes and beautifully shaded her face to distinguish a lighter side. Botticelli took care to shade in portions of her body, mostly on the left side, to add realistic depth to the beautiful goddess. The proportions show a great exaggeration with the long neck and torrent of hair which help to create the mysterious

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