TIZIANO Vecellio
(b. 1490, Pieve di Cadore, d. 1576, Venezia)

Venus and Cupid with an Organist

1548-49
Oil on canvas, 115 x 210 cm
Staatliche Museen, Berlin

This is another original version of the Venus and Cupid theme, this time showing the young Philip II playing the organ. These paintings of Venus are not based on any mythological theme. It has been suggested that a possible explanation for the exceptional combination of a contemporary (in this case even identifiable) person and a naked woman would be an allegory of the senses. The naked skin, the beauty of the scene, and the sound of the organ could represent the senses of touch, sight and hearing.




© Web Gallery of Art, created by Emil Krén and Daniel Marx.