On View
On viewObject number2013.20
Mars, Venus and Vulcan: The Forge of Vulcan
Artist
John Singleton Copley
(American, 1738-1815)
Date1754
Mediumoil on canvas
Dimensionsframe: 39 × 33 1/2 × 1 3/4 in. (99.1 × 85.1 × 4.4 cm)
image: 30 × 25 in. (76.2 × 63.5 cm)
image: 30 × 25 in. (76.2 × 63.5 cm)
Credit LineAcquired through the generosity of an anonymous donor
Exhibition HistoryNew York Cultural Center; Minneapolis Institute of Arts, MInnesota; University of Houston Fine Art Center, Three Centuries of the American Nude, 1975, no. 2 (as lent by Mr. Charles B. Chapman)
New York, Hirschl & Adler Galleries, American Portraits by John Singleton Copley, 1975-1976, no. 2, illustrated (as The Forge of Vulcan)
New York, Hirschl & Adler Galleries, American Art from the Colonial and Federal Periods, no. 9, p. 17 illustrated
New York, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, John Singleton Copley's America, June 7, 1995 - August 28, 1996
"Copley to Kentridge: What's New in the Collection?," KIA (Sept.14 - Dec. 1, 2013).
"Lasting Legacy: A Collection for Kalamazoo," Kalamazoo Institute of Arts, Kalamazoo, Michigan (Sep. 6, 2014 - Jan. 4, 2015).
"Unveiling American Genius," KIA Permanent Collection Exhibition, Traditional, Markin, Nay and Groos Galleries (March 1, 2021 - December 31, 2023).Label TextVenus dips arrows into a bowl of love potion under the suspicious gaze of her husband, Vulcan. Mars, clutching one of the arrows over his chest, approaches. Winged putti assist in their forbidden affair. One helps Venus throw her arrows while another sneaks around to take a spear from the hands of the love-stuck Mars. A third putto floats overhead, giggling and gesturing secrecy to the viewer. This story of love and betrayal provided many artists with an opportunity to create a scene of passion or of moral reprimand. However, Copley presents a light and humorous tone with bright colors and mischievous putti.
When he painted this, Copley was only fifteen or sixteen years old. He lived in the colonies and taught himself how to paint without access to European artworks or artists to teach him. His only reference for practice painting came from the reproductions he could find in a print shop. This, the artist’s first attempt at history painting, was copied from Nicholas Tardieu’s mezzotint of a painting by Antoine Coypel. Copley may have chosen this print over others because of its classical theme and the variety of textures and materials present for him to practice.
