Venus, Cupid and Ceres
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
96.7 × 109.2 cm (38 × 43 in.)
Classification
painting
Department
Painting and Sculpture of Europe
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
256795
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
A newly discovered work by Cornelis Cornelisz. van Haarlem, this colorful painting interprets the ancient witticism, “Without food and drink, love grows cold.” Venus, Roman goddess of love, is joined by Cupid and Ceres, goddess of grain; Bacchus, god of wine, is present symbolically through the grapes. The supple, translucent flesh demonstrates the interest in naturalism that blossomed in Northern Europe in the late 16th and early 17th centuries, which led artists to work increasingly “from life...