Abstract Book of the 3rd Global Conference on Gender Studies
Year: 2025
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The Permanence of Beauty: The Evolution of Venus in European Painting
Lauren (Yubin) Lee
ABSTRACT:
The ideology of beauty has chased women throughout history, and Venus, the Greco-Roman goddess of love and fertility, has served as the embodiment of this elusive concept since the 12th century B.C. Her constant presence in various forms of European art, from painting to mosaic, has established clear reference points and provided the ability to follow her portrayal across time. By analyzing western European paintings from the 15th to 18th centuries, I trace the evolution of the representation of Venus’ beauty, which closely reflects the more general perception and interpretation of women at the time. Although she started as an idealistic, celestial figure in the Renaissance, she entered the Baroque period with a more corporal presentation and eventually the Rococo era with a gentle, subtle interpretation. I argue that while interpretations of the goddess adapted to the values of the respective time periods, the importance and infatuation with beauty has remained constant, illuminating the intertwined relationship that women have shared with this obsession.
Keywords: art history, femininity, Greek mythology, representation, transformation