A Digital Celestial Being
Somewhere around the mid 1480s, Sandro Botticelli depicted the goddess Venus arrivingat the shore after her birth, when she had emerged from the sea fully grown. On a 1.72m x 2.78m tempera on canvas, this painting is commonly known as ‘The Birth of Venus‘, and has become a peak symbol of the Italian Renaissance.
Located in the Uffizi Gallery, Firenze, this painting holds more than just mythological significance. With explicit allegorical references to antiquity, the theme comes from Ovid’s Metamorphoses– a very important oeuvre of the Latin literature. There are clear references to the “Stanzas”, a famous poetic work by Agnolo Poliziano, a contemporary of Botticelli and the greatest Neoplatonic poet of the Medici court.
And thus, The Neoplatonic philosophical meaning is then clear: the work would mean the birth of love and the spiritual beauty as a driving force of life.
The same work is presented in a sculpted form by Cleomenes called ‘Venus de’ Medici.’
Studying this iconic work of art, we imagined what it would be to recreate this painting in contemporary times. Preserving the ideas of birth and fertility, we conceptualised a goddess blossoming from flowers instead. As soft and delicate as petals of Hydragenea, our modern celestial being is a depiction of the Pagan goddess of fertility, Ishtar. The multi-coloured makeup highlights her close proximity to flowers and her head-gear is a product of the animals she tames in the wild. Her blue plumage suggests her sacred Flycatcher bird. It also signifies her relation to the semi-precious stone Lapiz Lazuli. Just like the stone glistens in the sun, so do her blue eyes and her gold-like voluptuous, feminine body. With a little belly protruding, there is something fierce about her innocence. Her eyes reflect her motherly nature- the kind of love where she will fight the world to protect her off-spring. She drapes a veil over her hair to exemplify her relevance to romantic relationships, passionate love, and sexual wellness.
