Titian, Diana and Callisto
Full title | Diana and Callisto |
---|---|
Artist | Titian |
Artist dates | active about 1506; died 1576 |
Date made | 1556-9 |
Medium and support | Oil on canvas |
Dimensions | 187 × 204.5 cm |
Acquisition credit | Bought jointly by the National Gallery and National Galleries of Scotland with contributions from the National Lottery through the Heritage Lottery Fund, Art Fund (with a contribution from the Wolfson Foundation), The Monument Trust, J Paul Getty Jnr Charitable Trust, Mr and Mrs James Kirkman, Sarah and David Kowitz, Chris Rokos, The Rothschild Foundation, Sir Siegmund Warburg's Voluntary Settlement, and through private appeal and bequests, 2012 |
Inventory number | NG6616 |
Location | Room 29 |
Collection | Main Collection |
Previous owners |
Callisto was the favourite of Diana, virgin goddess of the hunt. Her beauty aroused the attention of Jupiter, king of the gods, who seduced her by disguising himself as Diana. Nine months later Callisto’s pregnancy was discovered when she was forced by her suspicious companions to strip and bathe after hunting. Titian chose to paint the moment of her humiliating exposure and banishment from Diana’s chaste entourage.
‘Diana and Callisto’ and Diana and Actaeon were painted for King Philip II of Spain between 1556 and 1559 and belong to a group of large-scale mythologies inspired by the Roman poet Ovid’s ‘Metamorphoses’ – Titian himself referred to them as ‘poesie’, the visual equivalent of poetry. At the same time, Titian began another painting associated with this pair, the Death of Actaeon, also in the National Gallery. For some reason, Titian never sent this painting to the king and it remained in his studio unfinished at his death.
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Insights
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Beautiful but deadly; hear more about Titian's retelling of Ovid's poignant stories of Diana in paint.
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