Hermes, Herse and Aglauros

Hermes, Herse, and Aglauros (c. 1580), in the Fitzwilliam Museum at Cambridge, illustrates the Ovidian myth in which Mercury (Hermes) fell in love with the Athenian princess Herse, but her jealous sister Aglauros attempted to block his entry and was turned to stone. Veronese renders this mythological narrative with the luminous color and elegant figural types characteristic of his later work. The Ovidian Metamorphoses provided an inexhaustible source of subjects for Venetian decorative painting, and Veronese's versions are distinguished by their combination of narrative clarity and visual splendor. The Fitzwilliam's strong collection of Italian paintings, built through centuries of Cambridge University connections, includes several important Veronese works.

The composition orchestrates the three figures in a dynamic narrative grouping. Veronese's luminous palette and fluid handling of the mythological figures create a scene of elegant drama characteristic of his approach to Ovidian subjects.