‘The Birth of Venus’ was, to someone; something truly monumental. As a result of this academic achievement and acceptance within high ranking parts of Italian society, Botticelli received some incredible commissions as a result of his status and many leading Italian cities and institutions were desperate to make use of his talents. It was painted around 1486 and it is thought to have been commissioned by the powerful Medici family, possibly Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de' Medici or his second cousin Lorenzo the Magnificent. The goddess stands upright on a shell as she is driven towards the shore by the breeze of Zephyrus, a wind god, who is holding the nymph, Chloris. It's bigger than you'd think. The theme, which can be traced back to Homer and to Ovid’s Metamophoses, was also celebrated by the great humanist Agnolo Poliziano in the poetic verses of his Stanze. Italian art dominated the development of European art throughout the 15th and 16th centuries when painters like Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael and Sandro Botticelli produced art of the highest level which also broke from what had gone before and set art upon a new, more imaginative and impressive direction which was to remain popular right up to the modern day. It can never be a bad decision to buy a reproduction of this classic painting whose stylish finish and uplifting content remains timeless. Sandro Botticelli, The Birth of Venus, c. 1486 The Birth of Venus is a renowned painting that is still referenced in our culture today. On the right of the painting, the winged figure of Zephyrus, the March Wind puffs his cheeks and blows. Her pose is impossible: although she stands in a classical contrapposto stance, her weight is shifted too far over the left leg for the pose to be held. At the official Salon, another female nude was however received in triumph – it was Alexandre Cabanel's La Naissance de Vénus (The Birth of Venus). The Birth of Venus is a tour de force, the first historical novel from one of Britain’s most innovative writers of literary suspense. It depicts Venus born from the sea foam, blown by the west wind, Zephyr, and the nymph, Chloris, towards one of the Horai, who prepares to dress her with a flowered mantle. The inspiration for the Birth of Venus seems to have been drawn from a number of sources. The Birth of Venus Artist Sandro Botticelli Year c. 1486 Medium Tempera on canvas Location Uffizi, Florence Dimensions 67.9 in × 109.6 in 172.5 cm × 278.5 cm Famous Paintings by Botticelli Fortitude Adoration of the Magi The Birth of Venus Primavera Cestello Annunciation Saint Augustine Venus and Mars The Mystical Nativity Temptations of Christ ‘The Birth of Venus’ sounds, to me, like the name of something more than just a painting. 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