Where Is Venus of Urbino? See It at Uffizi Gallery, Florence

Q: Where can I see Venus of Urbino?

It's at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy. Titian painted it in 1538 for Guidobaldo II della Rovere, Duke of Urbino.

Q: What later paintings did this influence?

It directly inspired Goya's Nude Maja (c. 1800) and Manet's Olympia (1863). All three show a reclining nude looking directly at the viewer. Each was controversial in its time. The lineage shows how artists reinvented the same pose across centuries, each adding contemporary provocation.

Q: How big is the painting?

It measures 119.2 cm × 165.5 cm (46.9 × 65.2 inches). The warm, golden flesh tones are characteristic of Titian's Renaissance palette. The small dog sleeping at her feet symbolizes fidelity (or domesticity), and servants arrange clothing in a cassone (wedding chest) in the background.

Q: What did Manet borrow from this painting?

Nearly everything: the reclining pose, the direct gaze, the hand placement, the small animal (Manet swapped the dog for a black cat). But where Titian idealized, Manet confronted. His Olympia stares at the viewer as a contemporary woman, not a timeless goddess.

Titian painted this oil on canvas work in 1538 reflects the Renaissance movement's influence on European art. As a Italian artist, Titian brought specific cultural perspectives to their work. Mythological subjects allowed artists to explore idealized forms and dramatic narrative. Titian draws on classical sources familiar to educated audiences. Ancient stories provided frameworks for addressing human themes with artistic freedom. Today the work held at Uffizi Gallery in Florence. Viewing the original reveals details of brushwork and color that reproductions cannot capture. The museum context places the work alongside related pieces from the same tradition. Those drawn to this style can explore mythological artwork for contemporary works in similar aesthetic traditions. Titian (1488-1576) was a Italian artist working within the Renaissance tradition.

One of the most influential female nudes in Western art history, inspiring Manet's Olympia and countless other works.

It's at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy. Titian painted it in 1538 for Guidobaldo II della Rovere, Duke of Urbino.

Probably not. The duke referred to her simply as 'the nude woman.' There are no mythological attributes: no cupids, no seashell, no divine setting. She lies in a contemporary bedroom with servants in the background. Mark Twain called it 'the foulest, the vilest, the obscenest picture the world possesses,' objecting to its frank sensuality.

It directly inspired Goya's Nude Maja (c. 1800) and Manet's Olympia (1863). All three show a reclining nude looking directly at the viewer. Each was controversial in its time. The lineage shows how artists reinvented the same pose across centuries, each adding contemporary provocation.

It measures 119.2 cm × 165.5 cm (46.9 × 65.2 inches). The warm, golden flesh tones are characteristic of Titian's Renaissance palette. The small dog sleeping at her feet symbolizes fidelity (or domesticity), and servants arrange clothing in a cassone (wedding chest) in the background.

Nearly everything: the reclining pose, the direct gaze, the hand placement, the small animal (Manet swapped the dog for a black cat). But where Titian idealized, Manet confronted. His Olympia stares at the viewer as a contemporary woman, not a timeless goddess.

Venus of Urbino

Details

Where to See It

The Artist

Historical Significance

More by Titian

Sacred and Profane Love

Christ and the Adulteress

Madonna and Child with Sts Anthony of Padua and Roch

The Concert

Also at Uffizi Gallery, Florence

Landscape drawing for Santa Maria della Neve

Primavera

The Discovery of the Body of Holofernes

Thebaid

Related Renaissance Works

The Adoration of the Magi

The Birth of Venus

The Alba Madonna

Pallas and the Centaur

The School of Athens

Sistine Madonna

Laocoön

Salvator Mundi

About Venus of Urbino

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