Titian: Love, Desire, Death by Matthias Wivel
A New York Times best art book of 2021
Titian (active 15061576) produced a masterful group of paintings for Philip II of Spain, celebrating the loves of gods, goddesses, and mortals. Depicting scenes fromOvids narrative poem Metamorphoses, Titian named them poesie and considered the works as visual equivalents of poetry. This volume presents a detailed study of the complete seriesDanae, Venus and Adonis, Perseus and Andromeda, Diana and Actaeon, Diana and Callisto, and The Rape of Europa, as well as The Death of Actaeonlavishly illustrated with details of these emotionally charged paintings. The book explores Titians creative process and technique, in addition to his use of literary and visual sources and his correspondence with Philip II. The artistic legacy of the series for later European painting is also examined in the works of artists such as Rubens, Velazquez, and Rembrandt. Offering the most comprehensive overview of these remarkable works, Titian: Love, Desire, Death is an indispensable resource for scholars and admirers of Renaissance painting.
Published by National Gallery Company/Distributed by Yale University Press
(March 16June 14, 2020)
National Galleries of Scotland, Edinburgh
(July 11September 27, 2020)
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston
(February 11May 9, 2021)
Titian (active 15061576) produced a masterful group of paintings for Philip II of Spain, celebrating the loves of gods, goddesses, and mortals. Depicting scenes fromOvids narrative poem Metamorphoses, Titian named them poesie and considered the works as visual equivalents of poetry. This volume presents a detailed study of the complete seriesDanae, Venus and Adonis, Perseus and Andromeda, Diana and Actaeon, Diana and Callisto, and The Rape of Europa, as well as The Death of Actaeonlavishly illustrated with details of these emotionally charged paintings. The book explores Titians creative process and technique, in addition to his use of literary and visual sources and his correspondence with Philip II. The artistic legacy of the series for later European painting is also examined in the works of artists such as Rubens, Velazquez, and Rembrandt. Offering the most comprehensive overview of these remarkable works, Titian: Love, Desire, Death is an indispensable resource for scholars and admirers of Renaissance painting.
Published by National Gallery Company/Distributed by Yale University Press
Exhibition Schedule:
(March 16June 14, 2020)
National Galleries of Scotland, Edinburgh
(July 11September 27, 2020)
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston
(February 11May 9, 2021)