Titian died of the plague, and Austrian artists were badly affected by the influenza pandemic of 1918, losing both Klimt and Schiele.
Titian
From bizarre origins as his mother was consumed by fire, and he completed gestation in Zeus’ thigh, to his marriage to Ariadne on the island of Naxos.
A virgin goddess who is sometimes the major goddess of childbirth, or the great mother of nature. A huntress and goddess of the Moon.
Scenes from Perseus and Andromeda, and Orlando Furioso, by Veronese, Moreau, Burne-Jones, Vallotton and others.
Many myths concern his endless adulterous rapes of mortals and subsequent pregnancies, but there’s also Philemon and Baucis.
The climax: Satan enters the serpent, and tempts Eve to eat the forbidden fruit of the tree of knowledge. Adam and Eve are undone.
Was a primordial deity, attendant at Aphrodite’s birth, or her son by Ares/Mars? When did he get his bow and arrows? Answered in fine paintings.
Often an excuse for a classical nude, at least two paintings show her clothed, and many reveal her love affairs.
Some of the greatest figurative artists including Botticelli, Titian, Poussin, Boucher, Ingres, Moreau, and Joseph Stella.
Much more than just a court painter, Velázquez rose from the ranks to become the King’s friend, and ultimately died as a result of his royal duties.
