Joshua Reynolds - Cupid untying the zone of Venus

• Title: Cupid untying the zone of Venus
• Artist: Joshua Reynolds (1723-1792)
• Date: 1788
• Medium: Oil on canvas
• Dimensions: 128 x 101 cm

This version of the painting is a copy of the original one painted in 1784. It is called an autograph copy because it was executed by the same artist, Joshua Reynolds, as the original and signed by him. The copy was commissioned by Lord Carysfort as a gift for Prince Grigory Potyomkin of Russia.

In this painting, which exudes both charm and sensuality, Reynolds initially proposed the title "Half Consenting." It portrays Venus, the goddess of beauty and love, as a flirtatious young woman. She coyly shields her face from immodest gazes with her arm. Meanwhile, mischievous Cupid tugs at the end of a blue silk ribbon encircling her waist, eagerly observing his mother's reaction.