Psyche & Eros Reimagined

22x30. Oil painting on heavyweight, coldpressed, cotton-rag free paper with ribbed edges.  

The story of Psyche and Eros originates from the ancient Roman novel Metamorphoses by Apuleius, and involves a long drawn out plot of Cupid’s accidental falling in love with the mortal Psyche, who undergoes many trials and tribulations to appease the gods, particularly Venus. I made a sketch of the famous sculpture, Psyche Revived by Cupid’s Kiss (1787) by Antonio Canova a few years ago, and upon finding it again I thought to depict their blissful reunion; the child of Cupid and Psyche is supposedly Voluptas or “pleasure,” and so delightful apricots and flowers sit in the sink. In many visual renderings Psyche is depicted with butterfly wings, as to represent the neoplatonic freedom of the soul from the body, when Psyche becomes immortal. Love crosses all borders and boundaries, and deepens with self awareness. Love is that verb which can't be defined, but defines everything.