Allegory of Sight (Venus and Cupid in a Picture Gallery)

Gallery 357, European Art 1500-1850, third floor

Main Building

Allegory of Sight (Venus and Cupid in a Picture Gallery)

c. 1660

Jan Brueghel the Younger (Flemish (active Antwerp), 1601–1678)

Jan Brueghel the Younger, the oldest son of Jan Brueghel the Elder (1568–1625), worked in a similar painting style to his father and followed his father’s practice, which included depicting art galleries of both existing and imaginary collections. This allegory of sight, likely one in a series of the five senses, shows how art collections were assembled to reflect both the wealth and the learning of their owners. Venus examines herself in a mirror, surrounded by a lavish array of the man-made and natural objects that filled princely studios.

Gallery 357, European Art 1500-1850, third floor

Object Details

Title:

Allegory of Sight (Venus and Cupid in a Picture Gallery)

Date:

c. 1660

Artist:

Jan Brueghel the Younger (Flemish (active Antwerp), 1601–1678)

Medium:

Oil on copper

Dimensions:

22 7/8 x 35 5/16 inches (58.1 x 89.7 cm)

Classification:

Paintings

Credit Line:

John G. Johnson Collection, 1917

Accession Number:

Cat. 656

Geography:

Made in Southern Netherlands (modern Belgium), Europe

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Gallery 357, European Art 1500-1850, third floor

Main Building

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