The Mirror of the GodsBy the end of the 15th century, the remains of the ancient gods littered the landscape of Western Europe. Christianity had erased the religions of ancient Greece and Rome and most Europeans believed the destruction of classical art was God's judgment on the pagan deities. How, then, didEuropean artists during the next three centuries create such monumental works as Botticelli's The Birth of Venus and Raphael's Parnassus? In The Mirror of the Gods, Malcolm Bull tells the revolutionary story of how the great artists of Western Europe--from Botticelli and Leonardo to Titian and Rubens--revived the gods of ancient Greece and Rome. Each chapter focuses on a different deity and sheds dazzling new light on suchfamiliar figures as Venus, Hercules, and Bacchus. Bull draws on hundreds of illustrations to illuminate the ancient myths through the eyes of Renaissance and Baroque artists, not as they appear in classical literature. When the wealthy and powerful princes of Christian Europe began to identify withthe pagan gods, myth became the artist's medium for telling the story of his own time. The Mirror of the Gods is the fascinating and extraordinary story of how Renaissance artists combined mythological imagery and artistic virtuosity to change the course of western art. The Mirror of the Gods profoundly deepens our understanding of some of the greatest and most subversive artwork in European history. This delightfully told, lavishly illustrated, and extraordinary book amply rewards our ongoing fascination with classical myth and Renaissance art. |
Other editions - View all
The Mirror of the Gods: Classical Mythology in Renaissance Art Malcolm Bull No preview available - 2005 |
Common terms and phrases
Actaeon Adonis allegory ancient antique Apollo appear artists Bacchic Bacchus and Ariadne Bacchus's became Boccaccio Callisto Caraglio's ceiling centre Charles classical commentary Cupid and Psyche Danaë death decoration deities depicted Diana editions of Ovid engraving Europa Farnese Farnesina Fasti Fèvre Florence fountain fresco Fulgentius Ganymede Giants Giovanni Giulio Giulio Romano goddess gods Goltzius Herculean Hercules hero iconography identified images Italian Italy Judgement of Paris Juno Jupiter Jupiter's labours later Latin literary loves of Jupiter maiolica Mars Marsyas Medici Mercury Metamorphoses Michelangelo's Minerva Muses myth mythographers mythological mythological art mythological imagery narrative Neptune nymphs Ovid Ovid's pagan painters painting Palazzo Palazzo Te Parnassus Phaethon Philostratus poets Poussin Raphael reliefs Renaissance representations role Roman Rome Sala Saturn satyrs scene seventeenth century Silenus sixteenth century sources statues story tapestries themes Titian Titian's translation Triumph Venice Venus vernacular viewer Villa Villa Farnesina visual Vulcan woodcuts