The Worship of Venus

Tiziano Vecellio, also known as Titianus or more popularly, Titian was one of the most important Renaissance painters. Considered as the founder of the Venetian school of Italian Renaissance painting, he was particularly known for his mythological and religious subjects. He had a successful career from the beginning and was soon sought by patrons. Titian's technique had visible brush strokes. This open style of painting gave his works a sensuous effect. Titian was best known for his rich pigmented colours, which he achieved through using rich pigments. His usage of light and shadow effects exemplified the Venetian trends of using colours. His works were primarily in oil as opposed to the primary mediums of tempera and fresco. In 1516, he was contracted by Alfonso I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara. For him, he painted a series of paintings of Dionysian themes. "The Worship of Venus" is one of them. The subject is the love and fertility of nature itself. The painting depicts cupids gathering apples in the presence of Venus herself. This piece is based on the description by the writer Philostratus. The Venus here is a statue and two women surround it and check on the decorations. The scene describes a Roman rite where women make offerings to goddess Venus to cleanse themselves of every blemish and imperfection.