Omnia Vincit Amor, or The Power of Love in the Three Elements
1809
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
70 3/8 x 80 1/2 in. (178.8 x 204.5 cm)
Classification
Painting
Culture
American
Department
The American Wing
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Maria DeWitt Jesup Fund, 1923
Accession Number
95.22.1
Tags
Art Historical Context
Behold Benjamin West's monumental *Omnia Vincit Amor, or The Power of Love in the Three Elements* (1809), a grand oil-on-canvas masterpiece measuring over 70 by 80 inches. This American work, now housed in The Metropolitan Museum of Art's American Wing, draws from the ancient Roman poet Virgil's phrase "love conquers all." At its heart is Venus, the goddess of love, triumphantly subduing symbols of the three classical elements: fierce lions for earth, soaring eagles for air, and spirited horses (likely seahorses) for water, all softened by playful doves—her sacred birds. West, a pioneering Am...
About the Artist
Benjamin West · 1738–1820
Benjamin West, born on October 10, 1738, in Springfield, Pennsylvania, emerged as one of the most influential painters of his era despite being entirely self-taught. Growing up in a Quaker family in colonial America, West displayed prodigious talent from childhood, creating portraits and religious scenes with materials gifted by local patrons. By his late teens, he had garnered enough support to t...