JANA ASHLEY L.

LARSEN

BS ACCOUNTANCY

2ND YEAR

SEPTEMBER 17, 2020

Pieta by Michelangelo

Pieta is a sculpture created by the artist, Michelangelo in 1498 to 1499. It was

commissioned by French Cardinal Jean de Bilhères, who wanted to be remembered

long after he died. Bilhères wanted Michelangelo to create “the most beautiful work of

marble in Rome, one that no living artist could better”. Pieta’s completion launched

Michelangelo’s career, and is known today as one of his greatest works of art.

Pieta depicts Mary, holding Jesus Christ’s body on her lap after his crucifixion.

This is known to be one of Mary’s key points in her life, one of the Seven Sorrows of

Mary. Unlike other artists who created interpretations of this scene in the bible with an

older Mary, Michelangelo incorporated youthfulness into Mary. This is because he

believed that virgins, or chaste women, stay fresh or do not age as they grow up. In his
own words: do you not know that chaste women stay fresh much more than those who

are not chaste?

Furthermore, Michelangelo did not want his sculpture to signify death. This is the

reason why he minimized sculpting wounds and scars on Jesus’ body. This also can be

seen in Jesus Christ’s expression, who almost seems to be asleep instead of being put

through violence. He wanted to express the communion between man and God by the

sanctification through Christ through the tenderness of the expressions shown in this

seemingly tragic scene.

Michelangelo sculpted Pieta using only a single slab of marble. He used Carrara

marble, which is a blue and white colored stone. It was named after the place where it is

most frequently mined. Additionally, Carrara marble has been one of the favorite

mediums of sculptors since the time of the Greeks. Michelangelo had a difficult time

proportioning young Mary’s body to hold her son’s, and this is the reason why he

blanketed Mary in the marble. However, this also showed Michelangelo’s prowess of

drilling fine details into his medium. It is also Michelangelo’s only work that he has

signed (and eventually regretted).

For his sculpture, Michelangelo mixed the style of Renaissance with a pose

known to be favored in naturalism. It was also a work thought to be very special at the

time due to the fact that sculptures featuring more than one person were very rare. The

two figures formed a pyramid, which was a geometric shape favored by Renaissance

artists like Leonardo da Vinci.

This painting which showcases the beauty of the Roman Goddess of Love,

Venus, was commissioned by the Florentine Medici family (who was believed to be

Lorenzo the Magnificent) in 1484. In the center of the painting is a beautiful, naked

Venus, arriving on a shore moments after her birth. During the Renaissance, artworks

revolving around Greek and Roman mythology was extremely common. Artists of the

time loved to create similarities and express values that were common between humans

and gods. As Botticelli lived in Florence, a city that studied humanities and arts

religiously, it is to no surprise that he was inspired by the Olympian Gods.

Botticelli has also based his painting on the Theogony by the Greek poet,

Hesiod. This is evident in his interpretation of the Goddess—arriving on a seashell,

being pushed by the winds of Zephyrus. Furthermore, many historians have linked the

breath of Zephyrus to the power of fertilization and the creation of life, which are also

the qualities that Venus is known for. Many historians also believe that the meaning of

the Birth of Venus is literal; it is a painting that depicts how Greek scholars believed how

the birth of the goddess of love and fertility was born. Another close interpretation of this
scene is one of the early ancient Greek Homeric Hymns, published by Demetrios

Chalkokondyles.

Furthermore, Botticelli also based his interpretation of Venus on sculptures such

as Venus de' Medici, and Capitoline Venus. This can be seen through the depiction of

Venus covering her breasts and lower parts with her hands. By this time, having a nude

woman as the focal point of a painting was not as common as the classical era.

As most painters back then had a muse for their paintings, it is believed that

Simonetta, the wife of Marco Vespucci, was Botticelli’s basis for Venus. Simonetta was

renowned for her beauty, and was the target of many men’s affections, with some even

married. When Simonetta died at the early age of 22, Botticelli begged to be buried by

her side.

Birth of Venus, one of the three paintings in Sandro Botticelli’s mythology series,

is a painting made of tempera on two canvases. During this time, most artists used

wood panels for their artworks; canvas was just beginning to be utilized. Due to the

humidity where Botticelli lived, wood panels tended to warp the paintings, and this might

have led him to use canvas. Canvas was cheaper than wood panels, however they

were less formal and could only be used for paintings shown in non-official locations.

It was completed in 1485, and was a part of the early renaissance movement

(particularly the Italian Renaissance). Although the painting incorporated some styles of

classical art, many symbols are of Gothic art. This painting showcases the qualities of

renaissance art: a revival of Greek and Roman styles, anatomy, realism, and figure

composition. Botticelli’s works of art were never really committed to naturalism, and he

seldom made his backgrounds intricate.