Cephalus and Procris
Paolo Veronese·1584
Historical Context
Veronese's Cephalus and Procris from around 1580-1584 depicts the tragic mythological episode where the hunter Cephalus accidentally kills his jealous wife Procris. The painting's poignant subject and luminous landscape reflect Veronese's late engagement with Ovidian mythology. The tragic outcome of the Cephalus myth—jealousy leading to accidental death—provided Veronese with a subject that allowed him to combine the beauty of the pastoral landscape with genuine emotional pathos.
Technical Analysis
The warm landscape setting and the luminous flesh of the dying Procris create an atmosphere of tragic beauty, with Veronese's characteristic warm palette lending elegiac tenderness to the mythological narrative.
Look Closer
- ◆Notice how Veronese stages this scene of "Cephalus and Procris" with the theatrical grandeur and luminous color that defined Venetian Renaissance painting.
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