The Birth of Venus,, Odilon Redon
Odilon Redon
The Birth of Venus,
DE
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Odilon Redon

The Birth of Venus,, 1900 – 1912


Dimensions
51.5 x 45.5 cm
Inventory Number
2076
Acquisition
Acquired in 1960, property of Städelscher Museums-Verein e.V.
Status
On display, 1st upper level, Modern Art, room 8

Texts

About the Work

Dark, heavy clouds rise up above the distant, light-brown land on the horizon. A reddish-brown female figure under a white cloth climbs out of the foam of the greenish-grey sea. The work previously bore the title 'La Baigneuse' - 'Woman Bathing' - but that probably refers to the Venus who was born out of the foam of the sea and stepped on to land in Cyprus. Redon painted the birth of the Greek goddess of love and beauty on numerous occasions. However, he mostly painted her in the seashell which is said to have carried her on to the land.

Work Data

Basic Information

Title
The Birth of Venus,
Painter
Period Produced
School
Object Type
Material
Technique
Label at the Time of Manufacture
Signiert unten links: ODILON REDON

Property and Acquisition

Institution
Administration
Collection
Creditline
Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main, Eigentum des Städelschen Museums-Vereins e.V.
Picture Copyright
Public Domain
Acquisition
Acquired in 1960, property of Städelscher Museums-Verein e.V.

Work Content

Iconclass

Primary
  • 92C411 birth of Venus; Venus Anadyomene: after Uranus' castration Venus rises from the sea wringing the water from her hair; usually she is awaited by the Hours
  • 31AA the (nude) human figure; 'Corpo humano' (Ripa) - AA - female human figure
  • 41D9 (showing oneself) undressed, quasi-nude
  • 25H2322 sea
Secondary

Research and Discussion

Provenance

Object History
...
W.G.F. Jongejan, Oosterbeek, 1956 [1]
E. J. van Wisselingh, Amsterdam, 1956 ]2] Galerie Dr. Raeber, Basel, 1957 [3]
erworben durch den Städelschen Museums-Verein, e.V., Frankfurt am Main, 1960.

Information

Since 2001, the Städel Museum has systematically been researching the provenance of all objects that were acquired during the National Socialist period, or that changed owners or could have changed owners during those years. The basis for this research is the “Washington Declaration”, also known as the “Washington Conference Principles”, formulated at the 1998 “Conference on Holocaust-Era Assets” and the subsequent “Joint Declaration”.

The provenance information is based on the sources researched at the time they were published digitally. However, this information can change at any time when new sources are discovered. Provenance research is therefore a continuous process and one that is updated at regular intervals.

Ideally, the provenance information documents an object’s origins from the time it was created until the date when it found its way into the collection. It contains the following details, provided they are known:

  • the type of acquisition and/or the way the object changed hands
  • the owner's name and place of residence
  • the date on which it changed hands

The successive ownership records are separated from each other by a semicolon.

Gaps in the record of a provenance are indicated by the placeholder “…”. Unsupported information is listed in square brackets.

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Last update

15.05.2023