Sine Baccho et Cerere friget Venus
Peter Paul Rubens·1612
Historical Context
Rubens painted Sine Baccho et Cerere friget Venus (Without Bacchus and Ceres, Venus Freezes) around 1612-13, illustrating the classical proverb attributed to Terence that love cannot flourish without food and wine. The allegorical subject allowed Rubens to combine three mythological figures in a composition celebrating sensual pleasure. The painting demonstrates Rubens' humanist education and his ability to translate classical literary conceits into vivid visual form.
Technical Analysis
The composition groups three figures representing wine, food, and love in an intimate arrangement. Rubens' warm flesh painting and rich palette create an atmosphere of sensual indulgence appropriate to the classical theme.
Look Closer
- ◆Venus shivers without the warming influence of Bacchus (wine) and Ceres (food), literalizing the Latin proverb that gives the painting its title
- ◆The cold, bluish flesh tones of Venus contrast with the warm glow typically associated with the goddess of love
- ◆A satyr offers a goblet of wine, attempting to restore warmth to the shivering goddess
- ◆The allegorical subject allowed Rubens to paint the nude while providing an intellectual framework of classical quotation
Condition & Conservation
This allegorical painting from 1612 illustrating the classical proverb has been conserved over the centuries. The cool flesh tones that are essential to the painting's meaning have been carefully preserved. The canvas has been relined and the surface cleaned.
