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Lot Essay
One of the most iconic images of the 19th century is Alexandre Cabanel's The Birth of Venus, a subject that has inspired numerous artists throughout the centuries from Botticelli to Ingres.
With her soft undulating curves, flowing locks and coy expression, Cabanel's seductive Venus created a sensation at her unveiling at the Salon of 1863. Even amidst the many depictions of the goddess at the famed 'Salon of the Venuses' (a phrase coined by the critic Théophile Gautier), Cabanel's painting appeared particularly alluring and was immediately acquired by Napoleon III for his private collection. The 1863 Birth of Venus, now in the Musée d'Orsay, established Cabanel's reputation as a leading Academic painter and led him to create additional versions of the painting that were quickly purchased by eager collectors.
In keeping with Classical mythology, Venus is washed ashore by the waves of the sea. The opening of her eyes, just visible from behind her folded arm, suggests her awakening or 'birth'. Her idealized form and polished finish reveal Cabanel's debt to his revered predecessor Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres. Ingres' Venus Anadyomene, exhibited at the Salon of 1848, was not only influential stylistically for Cabanel, but it also made 'a certain kind of sexual content legible in an unembarrassed way' (T.J. Clark, 'Olympia's Choice,' The Painting of Modern Life, Princeton, 1984, p. 126).
With her soft undulating curves, flowing locks and coy expression, Cabanel's seductive Venus created a sensation at her unveiling at the Salon of 1863. Even amidst the many depictions of the goddess at the famed 'Salon of the Venuses' (a phrase coined by the critic Théophile Gautier), Cabanel's painting appeared particularly alluring and was immediately acquired by Napoleon III for his private collection. The 1863 Birth of Venus, now in the Musée d'Orsay, established Cabanel's reputation as a leading Academic painter and led him to create additional versions of the painting that were quickly purchased by eager collectors.
In keeping with Classical mythology, Venus is washed ashore by the waves of the sea. The opening of her eyes, just visible from behind her folded arm, suggests her awakening or 'birth'. Her idealized form and polished finish reveal Cabanel's debt to his revered predecessor Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres. Ingres' Venus Anadyomene, exhibited at the Salon of 1848, was not only influential stylistically for Cabanel, but it also made 'a certain kind of sexual content legible in an unembarrassed way' (T.J. Clark, 'Olympia's Choice,' The Painting of Modern Life, Princeton, 1984, p. 126).