Metropolitan Museum of Art Critical/Research Paper

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This work of art measures about 42 inches x 52 1/2 inches (“Venus and Adonis; Titian...”). The art was created using oil paint, a medium composed of pigments and varying types of vegetable oils, such as poppy, bear-seed, walnut, and linseed oils (Frank 122). The painting was done on stretched canvas, and thus it gives the painting a slight textured quality. The technique in which Titian painted this work accounts for the soft appearance of the colors. It can be observed that the paint is very well blended, leaving almost no sign of harsh brush strokes on the surface of the work. The colors have a beautiful luminescent quality, from the light fleshy colored skin of the figures to the bright blue sky in the background; it appears that despite the hundreds of years since this painting was created, the colors are as vibrant as they must have been initially. The figures of the work, including the mythological characters Venus, Adonis, Cupid, and Adonis’s two dogs, are positioned in the foreground, or the front of the painting; these characters occupy all of the space, leaving the painting to feel very crowded with figures. Each character is proportional to one another, giving the painting a sophisticated and realistic portrayal of the figures that are represented. The painting is significantly large, taking up a vast portion of the wall in the museum; thus its size and position allow it to be one of the more distinguishable works of art.

Analysis: The size of the painting is significant in its ability to capture the attention of viewers. It is also significant in portraying such a powerful mythological tale of a goddess with immeasurable powers, though ironically these powers are not sufficient in the story being told by this piece of...

... middle of paper ...

...enzie, Janet. “Titian.” Studio International. The Studio Trust, 18 May 2003. Web. 11 Nov

2011. .

“Titian.” Dictionary of Art Online. 1996. Biographies. Web. 11 Nov. 2011.

“Titian.” Olga's Gallery. Olga's Gallery, 2011. Web. 11 Nov. 2011.
T/titian/titianbio.html>.

“Venus and Adonis.” The J. Paul Getty Museum. The J. Paul Getty Trust, n.d. Web. 11 Nov.

2011. .

“Venus and Adonis; Titian (Tiziano Vecellio).” Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. The

Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000. Web. 11 Nov. 2011. .

“Venus and Adonis.” Venice. U of Mary Washington, 11 Dec. 2008. Web. 11 Nov. 2011.
venice.umwblogs.org/exhibit/titians-venetian-venuses/venus-and-adonis/>.

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