Janeé Colin
Artist Paper 1
My first assigned piece is the Primavera by Sandro Botticelli. This piece was made c. 1482, it’s Tempera on panel and its 80 in × 124 in. This painting is located at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence. It was painted for Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de’ Medici, who was a cousin of the more well known, Lorenzo the Magnificent. Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco was a loyal patron of Botticelli; it is assumed that it was painted as a celebration of Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco’s marriage. This piece was one of the largest, and progressive pieces of the early Renaissance. This piece was highly progressive because it was really rich in mythological symbolism, unlike most Christian based pieces of this time. The piece contains characters from mytholocial…show more content… Above Venus, at the center of the painting is Cupid, the son of Venus. He is blindfolded while he is shooting his arrows of love, the flaming tips symbolize the “intensity” of the emotion of love of whoever he strikes. This is interesting to me because Venus is the goddess who protects and cares for the institution of marriage, and Cupid is known for his lack of morality and his attempts to take apart marriages. To the left of Venus is Flora, the Goddess of Flowers and Spring, and she is covered in garlands of flowers. Next to Flora is the nymph Chloris, who is being pursued by Zephyr, the God of Wind, who has a burning passion for her. The story about how Flora came into existence is that she was formally Chloris. When Chloris was in the woods when Zephyr, found and raped her. To prove to Chloris that he was sorry for his injustice, he married her and declared her Flora, the goddess of flowers. Botticelli depicts Chloris “transforming” into Flora, symbolizing the beginning of spring, which is pushed further by Botticelli placing both figures side by side within the same painting. On the right of Venus are the three Graces, who are the