The Triumph of Ovid

Poussin reached Rome in 1624, a Frenchman of nearly 30 still unknown in the city, and this canvas belongs to his first Roman years. The museum dates it to 1624 or 1625. It celebrates Ovid as the poet of love, the author of the Art of Love. Venus, known by her two doves, lies asleep at his feet while ten cupids run riot in the wood around them. Some take aim at a heart hanging from a branch, others light their torches from bolts of heavenly fire, and in the distance a cherub rides a dolphin. Scholars have recognised in the poet's face the features of Giambattista Marino, the Italian poet who had befriended Poussin and who died in 1625, so the picture may double as a tribute to him. It was never finished, and changes of mind still show through the paint. From behind a tree, a satyr watches the whole scene.