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Titian (Tiziano Vecellio) Italian
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 608
Tales from Ovid’s Metamorphoses inspired Titian to paint what he called poesie, or poetry in paint. Here, Venus tries to stop her lover from departing for the hunt, fearing—correctly—that he would be killed. The mood of sen-suality, conveyed by the beautiful depiction of Venus, seen from the back, enhances the viewer’s sense of the tragic end to this story, expressed through their exchanged glances and the frightened Cupid. Titian’s workshop made multiple versions of this composition, but this one is of exceptional quality and was painted by Titian himself.
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5217. Venus and Adonis, Part 1
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5231. Venus and Adonis, Part 2
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This artwork is meant to be viewed from right to left. Scroll left to view more.
Fig. 1. X-radiograph
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Fig. 2. Painting in frame: overall
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Fig. 3. Painting in frame: corner
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Fig. 4. Painting in frame: angled corner
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Fig. 5. Profile drawing of frame. W 5 3/16 in. 13.2 cm (T. Newbery)
Artwork Details
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Title: Venus and Adonis
Artist: Titian (Tiziano Vecellio) (Italian, Pieve di Cadore ca. 1485/90?–1576 Venice)
Date: 1550s
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: 42 x 52 1/2 in. (106.7 x 133.4 cm)
Classification: Paintings
Credit Line: The Jules Bache Collection, 1949
Accession Number: 49.7.16
Learn more about this artwork
"Where did Praxiteles see me naked?" Depictions of Venus in Sixteenth-Century Italian Painting
Curator Keith Christiansen explores a provocative new juxtaposition of four paintings by Veronese, Titian, and Lotto, all of which depict Venus, the goddess of love.
La Serenissima: Venetian Glory in The Met's Galleries
Curator Andrea Bayer surveys a selection of The Met's Venetian paintings ahead of a series of talks she will give in February, Celebrating La Serenissima.
Timeline of Art History
Essay
Couples in Art
Essay
Titian (ca. 1488-1576)
Essay
Venetian Color and Florentine Design
Museum Publications
One Met. Many Worlds.
"North of the Apennines: Sixteenth-Century Italian Painting in Venice and the Veneto": The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 63, no. 1 (Summer, 2005)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vol. 4, The Renaissance in Italy and Spain
The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Masterpiece Paintings
The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide (Spanish)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide (Russian)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide (Portuguese)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide (Korean)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide (Japanese)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide (Italian)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide (German)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide (French)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide (Chinese)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide (Arabic)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide
The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide
The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide
Italian Paintings: A Catalogue of the Collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vol. 2, Venetian School
Greek Art From Prehistoric to Classical: A Resource for Educators
European Paintings in The Metropolitan Museum of Art by Artists Born before 1865: A Summary Catalogue
Dürer and Beyond: Central European Drawings, 1400–1700
Art = Discovering Infinite Connections in Art History
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Venus and Adonis
Antoine Jean Duclos (French, Paris 1742–1795 Paris)
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After Titian (Tiziano Vecellio) (Italian, Pieve di Cadore ca. 1485/90?–1576 Venice)
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After Titian (Tiziano Vecellio) (Italian, Pieve di Cadore ca. 1485/90?–1576 Venice)
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European Paintings at The Met
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