Paysage au dieu fleuve. Paysage de Grottaferrata (left half of Venus and Adonis)

Landscape with River God from around 1625 at the Musee Fabre represents a fragment of a larger composition of Venus and Adonis. The river deity reclines in a classical landscape, embodying Poussin's vision of nature animated by mythological presence. Poussin's mythological subjects drew on deep reading of ancient texts — Ovid, Virgil, and Philostratus — and rigorous study of antique sculpture and Titian's poesie. His approach transformed mythology from decoration into moral and philosophical ...

The reclining figure is integrated into a verdant landscape setting. Poussin's handling of the mythological figure within nature demonstrates his developing approach to the classical landscape.