This Painting Is Weirder Than You Think. Here's Why.
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- čas přidán 28. 04. 2023
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This piece is called Venus and Mars by Sandro Botticelli and it's not your typical 15th century painting because it's a lot weirder. It features the goddess of love, Venus lounging in the woods with her lover and the god of war, Mars. We catch them sitting on a grassy patch of a forest after one of their rendezvous. Mars is sound asleep and completely unarmed while four tiny half-goat half-baby creatures play with his armor. Recently, an art historian named David Bellingham questioned whether the two figures in the painting were actually Venus and Mars. He proposed that they might instead be Adam and Eve from the Bible. This painting is full of fun and surprises. It might even be hiding a secret hidden meaning! Let me know what you think is going on!
#arthistory #classicart #fineart #botticelli #art
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I do encourage videos but can't be having ads in the middle sell at beginning or end unsubbed
I really like your mind... So refreshing against a dystopian world.
i normally skip the ads. i admit it. but i had to back up and watch your "commercial" twice. pretty sure we found you a side hustle, because your "ad" was amazing.
Your ad was so funny 😂 and very interesting video
Congrats for the sponsorship
Is it selfish of me to wish you produced more frequent new content like this? I absolutely love the way you dive into a painting and explain everything about it. I like your narration style, the sound of your voice, the subject matter.
It is not selfish, it is the voice of the people
Call me selfish too because I wasn't more.
Saaame
I looove these videos. I'd watch a new one everyday if possible. I believe half her views are me rewatching the previous videos.
There are endless paintings worth diving into. I love Art Deco content.
A veiled and disguised self portrait of Botticelli expressing his love for his model, Simonetta Vespucci.
botticelli was gay, stop erasing homosexuals from history
I thought that was Giuliano de Medici
Congratulations on your sponsorship!! Love the way you incorporated your ad into the art history of the painting. I hate ads, but you made it entertaining. Love your work. So happy for you to have a sponsorship!!!
I concur!
👍
Yes!
@@Sharonmxg I wish all ads we're like this✨
Around these parts we don’t praise people for embedding ads in their content🤦♀️
I seem to remember a Greek mythology story about Mars' minions planning an attack on a city which worshipped Venus and Venus seducing Mars and drugging him or tiring him out to the point that he was unable to attack the city until they had a chance to fortify their defenses. I had been told that this was the meaning of this painting which would be supportive of the satyrs mocking a passed out Mars who had been bested by Venus.
well a greek myth definitely would never be about "mars" and "venus" but about ares and aphrodite
Those are the Roman names
@@mysticloverfairy1 exactly.
@@justaponyyy True, but they are basically the same, by different names.
Historically, it seems Aphrodite might have been a war goddess in some part. She's a much older God than the Greeks. The Spartans in particular worshipped a war goddess aspect of her. This was ofc changed thereafter. What's interesting to me is how these somewhat foreign gods would be absorbed, but usually with a story of the Greek ones dominating or being better or whatever than them. Like still venerating, but in a "my God is better than your God" kinda way.
Love your deep dig into art. To my cretinous eye, Venus is a woman who’s pissed because Mars, her frat boy lover, has fallen into a drunken stupor before she even started to get undressed.
My take on it too.
@@JClover2 and mine
That is why the goat boys are trying to wake him up!
I'm along the same lines, but more like "THAT'S IT?!?!?!" He did his business, and she's sorely disappointed.
literally my first thought was “not as good as you thought huh venus”
This prompted me to research Simonetta's life and I have to thank you for that inspiration. I feel like her story gives more meaning to this painting. It was done after she died at 22, devastating Florence because she was loved by many. I'm also wondering if Mars here could be Botticelli, and/or Giuliano de Medici, as both were hit very hard by her passing. Mars looks pale, and we know Giuliano was killed two years after Simonetta died... could it be also a testament to shared grief? One might also self medicate with Beelzebub's Twinkie if that was the case! At any rate I absolutely frickin adore your videos, I learn so much and please NEVER STOP this incredible thought provoking content!
I knew i recognized this painting, its from medici the magnificent!
@@snufflesboi03 Really?? Very interesting! Did they imply Giuliano was Mars? Never watched it
No, Datura stramonium was transported to Europe by the gypsies who migrated from India towards Europe. Datura was used for visions and fortune telling by the gypsies. Accidentally I personally took some seeds mixed in a drink once and had a near death experience. Am a graduated botanist from Germany. Datura and South American Brugmansia are related but not the same plant.
Interesting. When was it transported? Would it have been around the time this artist painted this?
Hey, thanks!
There is so much debate about when Datura arrived in Western Europe. But yes, there was at least one species of Datura (D. metel) in India and the Middle East before the 15th century. There are writings about the use of D. metel or D. stramonium during mediaeval times in Europe. Lots of scientists, don’t believe it because they have not found any remains of it from that time. That’s all. It makes sense that it would’ve made its way with gypsies
I also believe that what is on the painting is too big compared to the life sized datura.
Very interesting. Can we use the term Roma instead of the outdated and offensive "gypsies" though, please? (Unless you are Roma, then of course whatever you're comfortable with.)
If the name Vespucci sounds in any way familiar, you may also know it from Columbus' botched 1492 voyage that landed him in the Caribbean, instead of India. One of the people traveling with him at that time was a man named Amerigo Vespucci, for whom the Americas are named.
Thank you!
Tbh, when I saw this painting first I thought the woman was, ehem ... disappointed with the result of the encounter and told the little satyrs to rudely wake up the man as a form of petty revenge. 🤭 It's so nice to hear a much more detailed and interesting background of this piece, specially Simonetta and the Satyr's fruit.
*This is the second time that "Watson and the Shark" painting caught me off guard! 7:30 Hope you talk about it soon!
I agree, my art teacher's interpretation was 'it looks like getting all that armour off him wasn't worth the bother.'
@@nanimaonovi2528 this just in: the feared Mars, god of war and slaughter is a one pump chump 😂
@@nanimaonovi2528 Oh! I was too embarrassed to speak my mind the first time I saw it on a class! I was doubting if to say it here, honestly. I still feel it was too much.
I love everything about your videos - your commentary on art, your exquisite humor and your heavenly voice 👏👏👏👏
Thank you!!! 😊
💯 % i agree 😂
im always patiently waiting for the scandal territory alarm lol
Dang! I'm sorry I didn't add it to this video... 🤦♀️
@@Art_Deco ur good I love your channel!
Amazing video as usual. The way you describe the paintings are just so entertaining and yet also educational
British actually guy here. Although this video is excellent;
Tossing a salad (arse salad) is absolutely not what you think it is.
A Satyr is pronounced with a long “A”. They’re similar to Fauns.
Kew in London is pronounced like “Q” or queue, not coo.
Datura is called “the devils trumpet“ not as a euphemism for male genitalia, but because the flowers are trumpet shaped.
Good points. I find it easier to look up the audio pronunciation of words rather than sound it out from an Encyclopedia.
Awesome video. Wasn't there a theory that the male model in the picture was Giuliano de Medici? If it was considering Giuliano's very public assassination it might have been a poignant reminder to watch your back, and not be lured into complacency. Glad to see you back!
I just love how in so many paintings there r multiple layers of sensuality and sexuality, while showing glimpses of it on the surface. Context to myths and news at the time. I mean, wow. U really opened my eyes to art
Easily one of the best channels on CZcams ❤🖌
Thank you for saying that!
Fun! I don't think the fruit is datura, though. Those suckers are wickedly sharp and stabby and not bigger than a baby's hand. Carlos Castaneda hadn't written his books on working with it and there might've been a few indigenous peoples in the west of North America playing with it for vision quests,...but.
I think the painting may be more simple; He climaxed before her and immediately went to sleep. She wasn't "done" and the satyrs are what she would like to do to him, but he's unresponsive, so shes realized that a beautiful man is useless if he can't get the job done (or is done too quickly) 😂😂
💯❗️❗️❗️
Looking at the picture, I don’t think anything happened “between” Venus and Mars at all. All Mars
Yes, that fruit is too big for Thornapple, whether they existed in Europe or not by the late 15th century, because there is a lot of debate about that. Apparently there was one species of Datura (D. metel) in pre-Columbian times in India and the Middle East. I guess it could have travelled?
She's fully dressed and her hair's not messy. I think he passed out drunk before they grappled.
Yet again, a morning where I drop everything to watch the new upload. My continued appreciation of one of my favorite channels on CZcams!
Wow! That's amazing to hear. Thank you for watching! 🧐
Ran to this notification, love the videos and learning all these new things that I wasn't taught in high school! Keep up the fabulous work
Thank you!
I was dreaming about a commentary on my all-time favorite painter and here it is 😃
Catching this 3 hrs after it dropped and already 5000 views! I’m so happy for you! I feel like these videos are so personal, I hope everyone appreciates them as we have.
Finally a piece by Botticelli! I enjoy your videos so much and he's one of my favorite artists, I'm so thrilled
1:09 we love a fallen angel reference
had to do it 🍿
yes we do🤲
In this video, you had about 2 seconds of Copley's "Watson and The Shark", from Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. When I go there with a friend, I always tell the story behind this painting. Perhaps you would consider this interesting work of art? (Loved Art History when in art school and love your videos!)
I second this!!
We appreciate your effort and hard work. God bless you.
Thank you!
The editing skills are getting better.
Thank you for noticing! I try to learn new ways to make the videos (hopefully) better all the time!
Venus is pissed because Mars fell asleep after the boom boom instead of cuddling. Sure looks like that. Probably called those goat babies to annoy the shit out of him
These goat babies reminds me of that one comic who draws children like he’s never seen a child before
Fascinating, entertaining, amusing, I love your videos! You’ve given me an interest in pictures that I would only have glanced at before,encouraging me to actually *look* and try to understand the narrative the artist was painting. Thank you for such a great channel!
You should make more videos about Botticelli's art !!
Botticelli is one of my favourite painters thank you so much for this vid keep up the good work ❤
It looks to me like Mars was premature and then assed out, leaving Venus irritated and unfulfilled
Is it weird that I like listening to your soft voice while explaining this beautiful painting 😮❤
I love these videos so much and idk why, I haven’t the faintest about paintings or anything. They’re just so well made!
I love the lively way you analyze the paintings, it’s really fun how you compose the whole thing! Can you do a video about Henry Holiday 1884 Dante and Beatrice?
I'd love to see your take on "Susannah and the Elders" by Artemisia Gentileschi, and "Susannah and the Elders Restored" by Kathleen Gilje
You really catch my attention. Love the style you explain the paintings. Thanks
OMG I wouldn't have guessed any of this! I adore the way you describe this painting, makes them so much more interesting!
Wonderful commentary! Whatever botanist stated that the green thing was a datura is not much of a botanist. I grow angels trumpet in my garden every year and nothing on the plants looks even remotely like that blob.😄
3:22 I think my favorite bit is the little satyr just BLASTING a shell horn in Mars’ ear, lol
Your videos are well documented and it feels like it could be on tv or something. I feel like they are totally unappreciated by youtubes algorithms!
Thank you for saying that! My standing with the algorithm gods has dropped a few tiers lately likely due to an irregular posting schedule. I'll try to post more regularly in the future though 😊
@Art Deco It's okay! Just know we enjoy the content & the fans will keep watching! Tbh when I found your channel I thought you were a PBS youtube alt channel because they were so well constructed! Keep being you & stay wonderful!
@@Art_Deco yes, the CZcams gods are fickle, so I try to go through my list of subscriptions once a week or so and check them for new content. And also to unsubscribe from channels I've lost interest in, but don't worry, yours isn't on that list 😂
You should get some datura seeds and grow them this summer. But not where pets or children can get at them. They are lovely. That green blob is so obviously NOT datura, which has a defining characteristic of being covered in many long sharp spikes, being cleft and being half the size of the smoothish blob in the painting. If Botticelli had meant to reference datura, if he knew about it at all, he would have had to put in its distinctive flower. The spines of the datura are also so toxicly poisonous that it is inadvisable to lay your hand on one as the cherub/satyr is doing. That would hurt a lot, just before your whole hand went numb. It would be more reasonable to publish a scholarly article asserting that it is a papaya.
After reading the comments and getting a bit more context about the painting I feel like this painting could have been a jab at the husband of the model Venus is based on since one comment I saw said the painting was made after her death so it could be the grief stricken artist basically saying "I would've been better for her you never satisfied her" but using the affair of Venus and Mars as the stage at which the story is set so that it's subtext and not just full on text.
Love your work, you're the imp on the shoulder of Great Art Explained. I love your irreverent but still insightful take and the obvious passion you have. I'm here for every video without fail! Thanks for the great content!
Super useful info, thank you. Love your channel. I would like to learn more about the datura theory.
A work of genius, not JUST Botticelli's painting, either.
You’re so good at editing. It’s where most of the comedy comes from. I love it
It's probably been said by many in the comments before, but I greatly enjoy your content, and look forward to more from you.
It's always a pleasure seeing a notification that a new video is out.
I genuinely love your videos. Every couple of weeks I start checking daily to see if you’ve added another. Really interesting and funny! Can’t wait to see more.
If you turn on notifications, you'll be told when a new video comes out, so you won't have to keep checking.
Never seen this painting but recognized it as Botticelli's work right away 💛💛💛
What here fascinates me more is the artist in love.
I would just like to say how much I am truly enjoying this channel. You are doing a great job with the interpretation of what you are seeing in each painting and I’m here for it girl it’s so funny and entertaining nice twist on what could be looked at as some old boring art lol. You have a new subscriber here.
Hi, I love your videos. As a small request, is it possible to include the current whereabouts of the paintings you narrate? Like city and gallery/museum/house?
Of course, it’s Venus and Mars.
That’s the official name of the painting where it hangs in the National Gallery in London.
I Love this! I’ve always wondered why Venus looks perfectly dressed; even pristine, hair in her complicated braids. Only Mars looks postcoital. I get the feeling that nothing actually happened “between” them at all. But the hand placement of Mars makes it look like his exhaustion is all from his own doing.
The fauns/satyrs holding up the lance make it pretty obvious of what’s not happening. Mars is not rising to the occasion. He may be beautiful, but Mars is just a wanker.
I kind of think these are Fauns rather than Satyrs, because Satyrs were usually depicted with erect bits and are Greek instead of Roman. But IDK. Either way, they are often a sexual symbol.
Personally, I think the fruit is too big to be a Thornapple, whether they existed in Europe or not by the late 15th century. My guess is it’s something that’s supposed to be an aphrodisiac at the time like a fig or fennel or something.
Brava!
Might explain why Venus looks pissed...
The title "Venus and Mars" is a modern name given to the painting long after it was finished as explained at 6:00. The title doesn't prove that the painting depicts Venus and Mars, but it's likely.
That fruit looks like an avocado to me, but what do I know.
@@bart2019
If there couldn't have been American-grown fruit in Europe at the time, I think that rules out avocado.
I think my favorite artistic depictions of Mars is when he's shown at rest, the complete opposite of his symbol of the god of war.
Daturas (thorn-apples, jimsonweeds) are not all New World plants. There are at least two I know of that are found in Asia, D. ferox and D. metel. D. metel, Indian thorn-apple, should have been known to Europeans as it had long been used as an "entheogen," but the user needs to be EXTREEMLY CAUTIOUS as Daturas (of the nightshade family) are also very poisonous, often deadly.
The ad! Well done.
And it goes without saying that your research, delivery, and editing are superb (but we’ll say it anyway).
The only channel where I'm actually curious to see the ad. Well done!
This is where I come to learn about art. Love your videos.
Nice seque to the sponsor! Clever engaging dialog every single time!
I love your work! Personally, examining the work, I am put in mind of Lancelot and Guenevere and their betrayal of Aurthur. Please, MORE VIDS!
I love this channel so much. I have no idea how i got here months ago but I'm grateful 😊
I'm grateful to have you here! 😊
🥰
You're so good at what you do that even your ads are entertaining!!!! Look forward to your videos!!! ❤❤❤
Fabulous! A great day when Art Deco posts! Thank you!!
Thank you, Jamie!
"Pure unadulterated chaos."
Vulcan: I disagree with that second word.
I have come to your channel by pure chance, but boy am I glad for that chance! I loved this one!
It may be a while before I get to London to see this work, but my favorite take on classical mythology is Benton's Persephone, where Hades isn't some handsome lord of the underworld, but a way-past-his-prime early 20th century farmer. Really nails him for the creeper he is. And details. Oh, it's got the details. Check it out, it's worth a monologue..
Excited for this one👉👈
Big thanks that I can learn Art History in my pajamas.
I mean the armor is blackened which was the trademark of the black army of hungry (not uncommon in art of the time period but usually religious art) and the man in the picture does bear a not too far off image of Mathius Corvinus the VERY famous king of Hungary. Not to mention he DID marry an Italian aristocrat who made no secret of her designs to rule the country should he kick the bucket (she may have even had his illegitimate heirs family killed). Wasps are also known to be matriarchal and parasitic as well......on the other hand his wife was a Frangapanni whose family was more associated with almonds than wasps. Also my entire historical knowledge of this time period is pretty much Hungary so I have a bias.
Mars looks a little bit like Mathis Corvinus, when he was much younger than when this was painted. But he looks even more like Sandro Botticelli himself. The actual name of the painting is “Venus and Mars“ and can be found in the National Gallery in London.
I don’t have any reason to believe that Botticelli would’ve been preoccupied with the Hungarian throne at the time. It’s not impossible, but random. I think it’s Roman gods depicting Roman families.
So happy to see a video from you! Love your channel!
Great entertaining video. Please do one on Francios Boucher's Leda and the Swan.
So many wonderful videos on CZcams. Yours are undoubtedly the best.
You said one of the painting’s themes is that “love conquers and outlasts war”. Heh. I think Mars didn’t last long at all here, which to me explains Venus’s expression. She looks a bit pissed, but also disappointed and resigned. I don’t think she got much out of it at all. Mars is wiped out, but her shift is unruffled and her hair pristine. Mr. One-and-done rolled over and fell asleep, the little kids invaded, and she’s left wondering if this was even worth it.
Brilliant, funny, educating and eye-opening! THANK YOU ❤
Lovely video as usual, and the edits to tie in the ad portion were brilliant!
One question though, would it be possible to get an artist or name for the painting at 4:15 ? Tried a few diffent searches and I'm so far striking out
Mademoiselle De Lancey by Charles Auguste Émile Carolus-Durand
@@milootje007 awesome, thank you!
Well, Botticelli, you've done it again - 1st I couldn't take my eyes off Venus' weird neck, and now Mars' right leg just jumps out and screams at me! (So much so, that I didn't notice the two, peripheral Satyrs playing with the armour until you pointed them out! 🙄)
Love your videos! Can you please share where you learn art history from? Is there a book that you recommend?
"He requested to be buried at her feet"
My man was simping 500 years ago
Excelente , me pone a detallarlo más , gracias
My favorite euphemism is "making the beast with two backs." Rolls off the tongue.
That city hidden in the painting is so well done.
Have you ever done a video on Judith Beheading Holofernes? I'm fascinated by it!
So glad your channel's arrived on my feed🎉
I enjoy your insights so very much!! Thank you ❤
Allusive. It's better art when it points in several or many directions. Just having seen this woman's face so frequently in, "Birth of Venus," brings Venus to mind. Well done again, Ma'am!
Ahh Botticelli, the simp of the early Renaissance art world.
Yay!! I love this channel 😁
..INSIGHTFUL AND ENTERTAINING. TOP10 PAGES CURRENTLY. PLEASE COVER A COUPLE SPANISH ARTIST IF U CAN.. Grid, Greco, Goya.. etc
Love this! I actually covered Goya's Maya paintings a couple of videos back! Thank you for watching 😊
Great in depth videos. Just one small suggestion. You time out and pace the narration with the visuals, but when you take the breaths out try and keep the pacing open as if the breathing is still there. Maybe even leave some of that breathing in. There isn't any real time limit, you can stretch it out a little. It's a common occurrence on this 'platform'. Still great subjects well documented. Well done and thanks.
You make painting history so fun thank you
The fact that botanists immediately identified the fruit and then constructed a whole narrative around the painting only to have someone point out that its completely impossible that it's the fruit they think it is just proves to me how people just make up whatever bs they want a painting to be about.
I agree. And it happens in every field, not just art. If they wear a white coat, be aware.
The fact that people can look at this painting and think the figures are suppose to be Adam and Eve is even stranger.
To me, the fruit looks more like a green pine cone. Pines are common in the Mediterranean... When those pine cones fall down and hit your head, you are knocked out like Mars. Those things are huge! 😅
Datura flowers are called Hell's bells or devil's trumpets, and datura hallucinations are terrifying nightmares, blood dripping from the ceiling, all your friends are walking dead, and the sky is filled with smoke and there are flames everywhere.
If that's the forbidden fruit, knowledge of good and evil, it makes perfect sense.
Great job on the ad segue. I.....actually watched the whole ad.
Once again you created a very enjoyable video! Could you do a painting called Stańczyk by Jan Matejko? It's a very interesting piece and I would love to see a video on it.
She already did! czcams.com/video/-wdM_6p8sUU/video.html
If they're not actually Venus and Mars, that makes a lot more sense - unless it's meant to be tongue in cheek rather than a literal depiction of gods. Looks like the guy was a soldier / knight, with the wild satyrs mischievously playing dress-up in his armor while he's in the nude. It feels like it's a comedic scene meant to poke fun at the soldier - either he's fallen asleep right after the deed (potentially leaving the woman unsatisfied) or this entire scene may be his dream while taking some private time in the bushes when he's meant to be doing his job. I've never heard satyrs pronounced the way you do... Great video though, thanks!
Cheers for your vids I look at paintings differently now
Satyr is pronounced "satur" as in Saturday (RP) or in American English "say tear" as in "say the word tear".
Don't mean to be a brat, American English has two pronunciations of tear - like 'tier' like when crying, or like 'tare' to rip or rend. I'm assuming the latter, given I've only heard satyr as described in the first bit ('satur'), but I'm curious if there is supposed to be a different pronunciation?