and realness of her beauty; untouched by decorative items and imperfections. Finally the biggest clue that led me to her identity, was the presence of her son, Cupid. He is found in many Venus pictures, and he is very easy to decipher in the work. I knew it was him, because of his wings; which is his greatest and most well known attribute. Knowing all of these clues, I was easily able to piece together the identity of the subjects, before I even saw the title of the panting.After doing some further research on this painting, I came to learn about some aspects that tend to shed some light on what Velazquez, actually intended for this work to represent. The pose that Venus is in, is erotic, yet she still manages to embody innocence and sensibility; due to her surroundings. She is displayed with elegant draperies surrounding her, which help to create the illusion that she is so rightly a goddess, upon a pedestal, not able to be touched. The majestic red in the background seems to show exaggerate her royal status and greatness. As for Cupid, we can see that he is in a state of relaxation, since he is disarmed; without his traditional bow and arrow. He is completely immersed and in awe of the beauty that radiates from his mother, in her reflection in the mirror. The image that can be seen of Venus through the mirror, is the cause of many debates with this work. Her reflection is that of only her face, and oddly enough, against the laws of optics, leaves out the rest of her body. Also the Goddess of Love is not looking at herself, which is usually common in a mirror, but toward us, the viewers of the painting. I come to see this as Venus’s greatest feature; although she is the absolute figure of beauty, she is not vain, or at least not in this work. We, the viewers are all busy admiring her, as well as her son Cupid, yet all she can do is look toward us, through the magic of the mirror.There was no other decent option for ...
