Birth Of Venus Compare And Contrast Essay

Although, both the Aphrodite of Knidos and the Birth of Venus have like traits such as nude female body, contrapposto stance, and iconography, they also can be easily contrasted by period of creation, technique, and artist. The human body has always been a popular choice among artists, but it seems the nude female body is quite controversial. The Aphrodite of Knidos, sculpted by Praxiteles about 350 – 340 B.C., or during the Greek Late Classical period, was a nude female modestly covering her genitalia. The Aphrodite was what made the small island of Knidos known to people around the world. Some 1,000 years later, the Birth of Venus arrived. Artist Sandro Botticelli, during the Italian Renaissance (ca. 1482,) defied odds with a similar interpretation of the Aphrodite despite stricter views on nude women. Both pieces share similar traits, yet can be easily identifiable apart from each other.

Both natures of the Aphrodite of Knidos and Birth of Venus are iconographic. It

seems a hidden meaning between both sculpture and painting exists, but is not quite understood. Aphrodite covering her genitalia not only highly represents her fertility but also puts forth a shameless gesture. A Havelock helps the Aphrodite of Knidos stay easily recognizable but still views can sense that due to her nudity, the sea gave a miraculous birth to her. Mentioned, is a bracelet worn by her, it is said to have been a gift from Praxiteles to his beloved piece. The hydria beside Aphrodite represents the cleansing she was to do to become pure, and also helps to keep her upright. On the other hand, if we look at the Birth of Venus, we can see the second she arises from what seems to be sea foam. From her rise to the surface, glassy blue waters enclose around her as she stands atop a half shell, said to represent a vulva.
At a quick glance, there are very apparent matching traits between the Aphrodite of Knidos and the Birth of Venus.

Both Goddesses stand nude, slightly covering their genitalia; It’s as if Botticelli took on the modest look Praxiteles put forth. The only difference in the modesty shown is Venus’ long flowing locks some how managed to cover her slight indecent moment in time. Both men set forth a type of admiration for the women pictured in their pieces considering they gave them some kind of covering. When looking at the goddess’s facial expressions, we can see a very apparent deviance in their half smiles, as if they were caught. The Aphrodite represents a quite symmetrical body with even the softest features easily recognizable but, Botticelli was quite close to mimicking such. The Venus’ elongated neck with shoulders slightly sloped still can be compared to the soft features of Aphrodite. Aside from the standing contrapposto, the softness featured in both pieces is what simply draws them

together.