The Toilet of Venus
by GUERCINO, Oil on canvas, 150 x 190 cm
The painting takes up a theme made popular by Annibale Carracci and his pupils. Guercino’s distinctive use of colour creates dramatic effects of atmosphere and lighting, so that the pale body of Venus is highlighted against her dark drapery and that of her companions. Guercino’s depiction of the tumbling putti was influenced by Titian’s Worship of Venus.