Comparing Venus Of Urbino And Olympia: An Artistic Analysis

Overview of the Two Paintings

Question:

Compare and contrast the representation, significance and meanings of space in the two paintings. Analyse the methods of spatial representation used (e.g. perspectival, expressive, symbolic, fragmented, flattened); consider their relationship to social, cultural or spiritual ideas about space and art in the time they were made; and present your interpretation of the possible overall meanings of the two artworks in relation to the treatment of space.
 

The space in painting is regarded as the considerable elements of arts which consist of certain areas and distances in the surrounding between the components of the paintings. To compare between the two paintings from the different decades, the researcher has chosen two highly famous paintings from different era. One of the paintings is Venus of Urbino, which is created by Titian, and the other one is Olympia, which is created by the Edouard Manet.  It has been observed that the Titian had painted the art in the period of renaissance, and the artist used a wide range of thought behind the painting. After several years of creation of Venus of Urbino, the famous artist Edouard Manet created another piece of art which is quite similar with that of the Titian’s creation. However after disclosing the art in front of the people there were some contradictions among the people.

Painting 1:

From the initial stage of analysis in the picture Venus of Urbino, it has been observed that the painting had been made on an oil canvas, and it had a dimension of 119 cm x 165 cm. 

• Artist: Titian
• Dimension: 119 cm X 165 cm
• Medium: Oil on canvas
• Location: Uffizi Gallery
• Subject: Venus
• Created: 1538
• Period: Renaissance 

The basic theme behind the art was a nude young woman, who had had been compared with the goddess of Venus. In this picture, the woman was reclining on bed. She was lying within a Renaissance palace. It has been observed that Titian’s Venus had no prostitute image or thoughts, and within the painting there was no slight support of casual unfaithfulness. However, in the different thinking it has been depicted that, it was tinted to remember Guidobaldo's marriage, and it was undoubtedly about celebrating marriage, love and the corporeal closeness between a man and his wife. It also symbolizes faith that was held up by numeral facts[1].In the art it has been depicted that in her right hand, the girl holds a bouquet of roses, which is usually a symbol of love. On the other side, in this image the sleeping dog is a widespread sign of faithfulness. Finally, the maids in the background depict the caring attitude towards the woman. The maids were normally stocking up their clothes. Possibly the picture was imagined as a perfect replica of actions for Giuliana, the young bride ofDuke’s. It was positively not uncommon for images of openly erotic scenery to be specially made to rejoice a marriage, even though they would be planned for confidential viewing only[2]. The picture Venus of Urbino obtains its motivation from Giorgione’s Sleeping Venus, which was completed by Titian after the death of Giorgione (he tinted the picture after the death of Giorgione).It has been perceived that this image influencedseveral artists such as Mark Twain, and Manet etc. In the Manet’s painting, the main thought wasnot enough, the picture and art of Manet depicts more dreadful story in the art of Olympia[3].

Analysis of Venus of Urbino

The painting represents a well maintained work of art which is balanced rather than the lazy motionless nature of the lying down character with a reliable dynamic constituent. The tiles, foreshortened by the viewpoint, steadily guided to the ending of the room, where one of the maids is stepping up to arrange the woman’s dress. A broad vertical simplicity had been observed at the all-black part of fence from the back of the figure. In this picture, the wall represents the private and the semi-private chamber of the room. Half of the screen behind the picture is black, and the rest of the part of the wall was normal. From the pictorial representation, it can be analysed that the boundary of the room defined the private and the public parts of the room. Titian’s model was consequently so much courageous, and so much more revelatory. Within his art, the woman’s unconditional sincerity was interpreted into a type of incorrupt purity, no stuff how erotic and redolent the circumstance is. All these hints in this picture guided to the idea that Titian provides physical appeal and happiness consent, or at slightest a glowing considered reorganization. The picture overall can be represented as one given authority to the thought of sexuality, and supporting the interaction, sex (between a bride and a groom) as optimistic and attractive[4]. The overall painting mainly depicts the sexual appeal of Venus. In this art of thinking, it has been considered that the woman seems more attractive and sexy to be innocent.

• Olympia
• Artist: EdouardManet
• Dimension:5 cm × 190 cm
• Medium: Oil on canvas
• Location: Musée d'Orsay 
• Subject: Olympia
• Created: 1863 

According to the painting of Olympia, it can be depicted that the artist Edouard Manet wanted to make a similar or copy the reflection of the painting Venus of Urbino. By making this art in the year 1863, the artist Manet faced several conflicts from the different people and artist. It has been observed that the image or the creation of Manet represents a low-class prostitute. Olympia can be said as an indication to Titian's Venus of Urbino (1538) and Goya's Maja Desnuda (1799-1800) that portrays no difficulty into the conventional "boudoir" type, yet they conclude in quite casual and personality representation of a woman unconcealed of her figure[5]. It is commonly considered that Olympia was a graphic representation of means of access from Baudelaire's well-known collection of poems named Les Fleurs du Mal (1857). For example, Manet’s painting openly contains a black cat, which is a symbol of sensitive prostitution and sexuality.

Captivating or considering Titian's Venus of Urbino as his ideal model, Manet generates an effort with a belief that creating such painting will lead him to a place in the pantheon of grand performers. In this art of Manet, he decided to draw a lady of his time period and in his way of thinking where he had drawn an art which was not at all a womanly perfect. This art depicts a prostitute of an upper-class wealthy client[6]. To get the effective outcomes of his imagination he created the art in his own manner. In place of the even shade of the grand masters, his external look was painted in a hush, in rough brushstrokes clearly visible on the exterior of the canvas of the painting as an alternative of the cautiously created point of view that shows the way to the gap of the picture. Manet presents an image frame compressed into two surfaces. The center was the bright white figure of Olympia on the couch; the surroundings are dark.

In this painting realism as he observes it, Manet defines the conventional purpose of art in the nation of France, which was to worship the past and the present situation, and produce first contemporary painting. His model, Victorine Meurent, portrays a prostitute, a woman whose figure is a service. A genuine woman, with an autonomous courage, gazes out from the picture with lots of faults.

It can be said that in the Titian’s Venus of Urbino the art did not depict the negative sign of the nudity of women. In this picture the theme can be effectively exhibited towards the public but on the other hand the Manet’s Olympia depicts the theme of prostitution and negativity in the sense of nudity which cannot be exhibited to the public.  To refer the private space and the public place in these art it can be observed that Titian’s picture depicts the private space of a women within her room on the other hand Manet’s art depicts the prostitute image of an woman which was mostly referred as a public space in this painting. In the art of Titian’s he made a private sex image of a women within a room but in the Manet’s art he totally makes the private sex to public which can very contradictory for the people’s point of view. 

Conclusion

From the above analysis it can be summarised that, the purpose or plan of the two pictures is fairly obvious. The unique Titian depicts the ethics of sexual intercourse even though still producing secrecy. On the other hand Manet’s painting visibly demotes to that of Titian’s which has no importance to indicate, but talks about the subject matter of prostitute, her line of work and her approach on the way to her work. Even though dissimilar in interpretation, the arts do contribute to some similarities mostly because Manet deliberately makes a copy of the Titian’s picture. Initially in the art of work, Olympia lies down diagonally at the center of the canvas from the left to right, observing at the spectator, as the Venus of Urbino, but it also had been observed that the other characteristics of the art are not identical.  

References

Clark, T. J. 1999. The Painting Of Modern Life. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press.

Gervais, D. 1998. "Review. Raphael's 'School Of Athens'; M Hall [Ed.]. Titian's 'Venus Of Urbino'; O Goffen [Ed.]". The Cambridge Quarterly 27 (2): 171-174. doi:10.1093/camqtly/27.2.171.

Grabski, Jozef. 1999. ""Victoria Amoris": Titian's "Venus Of Urbino." A Commemorative Allegory Of Marital Love". Artibus Et Historiae 20 (40): 9. doi:10.2307/1483663.

Hennessy, Susan S. 2001. "The Painting Of Modern Life: Paris In The Art Of Manet And His Followersclark, T. J. The Painting Of Modern Life: Paris In The Art Of Manet And His Followers . Princeton University Press, 1999. ISBN 0-691- 00903-1. Pp.338. $24.95.". Contemporary French Civilization 25 (1): 167-168. doi:10.3828/cfc.2001.25.1.012.