Catalogue published on the occasion of the exhibition Mythological Passions: Tiziano, Veronese, Allori, Rubens, Ribera, Poussin, Van Dyck, Velázquez, on view at the Museo Nacional del Prado in Madrid from 2 March to 4 July 2021.
Love, desire, and beauty are intimately connected in Greek and Roman mythology, dominating the lives of gods and mortals. The texts that focus on these themes – Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, Ovid’s Metamorphoses, and Virgil’s Aeneid, among many others – were revered by Renaissance and Baroque artists, who aimed to represent them in a powerfully expressive manner.
This fully illustrated catalogue offers a detailed study of mythological paintings by Titian, Veronese, Allori, Rubens, Ribera, Poussin, Van Dyck, and Velázquez. Inspired in some cases by a desire to emulate and in others by a sense of rivalry, these artists were responsible for the creation of a fascinating interpretative sequence that reflects the adaptability of the mythological tradition and its potential for constant renewal.
The texts included in this publication by Sheila Barker, Miguel Falomir, Javier Moscoso, and Alejandro Vergara analyse the importance of mythology for Renaissance and Baroque artistic culture, the way in which Europeans of the time understood the passions, and the relationship between women and mythological painting as viewers, collectors, and artists. The catalogue also includes “passionate and erudite” commentaries on the twenty-nine works featured in the exhibition.
