Jupiter and Antiope

Jupiter and Antiope, painted around 1551 and held at the Louvre, depicts the Ovidian myth of Jupiter disguised as a satyr approaching the sleeping nymph Antiope. The painting belongs to Titian’s series of mythological paintings or poesie created for Philip II of Spain, which represent the summit of Renaissance mythological painting. The contrast between the sleeping woman’s vulnerable beauty and the satyr’s predatory approach creates a scene of erotic tension characteristic of Titian’s late mythological works. The Louvre’s version demonstrates the sensuous handling of the nude that made these paintings both artistically revolutionary and commercially desirable.

The warm, golden flesh tones of the sleeping nude and the lush landscape demonstrate Titian's mature mastery of sensuous painting, with increasingly free brushwork creating an atmosphere of languid pastoral beauty.

Now in the Musée du Louvre, Paris, this painting has been cleaned and restored. The work is sometimes called the "Pardo Venus" after its provenance in the Spanish royal palace of El Pardo. The large canvas has been relined. Some areas of the complex composition show more wear than others. The central figure of Antiope remains the best-preserved passage, with luminous flesh tones.