Venus Disarming Cupid, ca. 1527–30

Parmigianino was a peculiar mannerist artist with a delicate and elegant style, and the first Italian painter to make his own etchings. Despite his short career, he drew extensively, leaving more than 1,000 drawings behind. The story originating from Ovid’s Metamorphoses, recounting the disarming of Cupid by his mother, Venus, is a recurring theme in Parmigianino’s drawings. This study elaborating the refined posture of the reclining Venus was possibly made either for a chiaroscuro woodcut or a painting, or even perhaps as an autonomous presentation drawing. The pink preparation, the wash rich in tones and the bold use of white heightening create a highly sensual atmosphere.