The Rokeby Venus : A longer look

Super course at the National Gallery looking at  Velazquez’s Rokeby Venus led by Karly Allen one of the National Gallery lecturers.

The structure of the course was excellent setting the painting in its historic context looking at what Velazquez was doing at this time and where has was in his career as well as who owned the painting over the years.

We then went to sit round the picture itself and look at its finish and get an idea of our own emotional responses to it.

After a quick coffee we put this picture in its art historic context looking at other reclining female nudes plus the genre of Venus at her toilet. I particularly enjoyed this section as I am fascinated by how artists are influenced by earlier generations. It was also strange to think of Rubens and Velazquez going round the Spanish royal collection together looking at the Titians.

There was then a session on responses to the picture since it entered the public domain n 1906 including the attack by a suffragette and finally a discussion about what we thought Velazquez was trying to achieve and say with the picture.

A really good morning and I’ll definitely book more in this series. 

Comments

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02 March, 2013
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