Cupid And Psyche

by Iryna Goodall

Title

Cupid And Psyche

Artist

Iryna Goodall

Medium

Photograph

Description

Cupid and Psyche, Auguste Rodin, 1898, at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, England.

Psyche, “Soul” in Greek, in classical mythology, princess of outstanding beauty who aroused Venus’ jealousy and Cupid’s love. The fullest version of the tale is that told by the 2nd-century-AD Latin author Apuleius in his Metamorphoses, Books IV–VI (The Golden Ass):

Psyche was the daughter of a king and queen and she was stunningly beautiful. She was so beautiful that she was even compared to some of the Goddesses. This drove Aphrodite, or Venus in Roman narratives, the Goddess of Love, mad with jealousy. She devastated the kingdom of Psyche’s father with the plague. Aphrodite told the king she would only end the plague if she sacrificed Psyche to a sea-monster. When the King was tying his daughter up, Cupid, the son of Aphrodite, saw Psyche and he instantly fell in love with her. The winged god rescued Psyche and was so enamored with her that he married her, even though she was a mere mortal.
Cupid asked his new love never to look at his form. He could not let a mere mortal look upon him as she could be harmed. Despite this, the couple was happy and Cupid turned out to be a great husband. Psyche was so happy that she did not ask to see her husband and had no idea that he was a God. Cupid, as a God, could provide his wife with a lavish lifestyle. Now the two sisters of Psyche heard about this and they became insanely jealous. They began to plant seeds of doubt in Psyche’s mind about her husband. They asked her ‘why would he not let himself be seen?’
Psyche could no longer restrain herself and one night when her husband was sleeping, she brought a candle into the darkened bed-chamber. Psyche was transfixed by her husband and his otherworldly good looks. Cupid woke up to see his wife standing over him. She had disobeyed him and in a rage, he flew away. He returned to his mother, who had always hated Psyche and been opposed to her marriage to her son. Psyche was disconsolate and she vowed to do all she could to win her husband back.
Psyche, with great bravery, approached Aphrodite and asked her how she could win her husband back. Aphrodite decided to torment her and set her four tasks. If Psyche could complete these tasks, then she would help her to become reconciled with Cupid. She was able to accomplish the first three tasks, thanks to her ingenuity, but the last task was by far the most challenging.
Aphrodite asked Psyche to descend to the underworld and to retrieve Persephone’s special beauty ointment. This was an impossible task for any mortal. However, Psyche went to a speaking tower who told her how to evade Charon and Cerberus and enter the realm of the dead, unscathed. The voice from the tower also told her how to approach Persephone, the Queen of the Underworld. She was successful and she managed to get the magical cream. Psyche became curious and wondered what the cream would do for her—would it make her perfect? She opened the box, and when she did, she immediately fell into a deathlike slumber. Cupid heard of this and he immediately went to help his beloved.
Cupid flew to Zeus, or in Latin sources, Jupiter in Olympus, and asked him to intervene. Zeus convened an assembly of the Gods and they decided that Aphrodite had been too harsh. Zeus agreed to bring Psyche back to life and allow her to enter Olympus and drink ambrosia, which made her immortal. Psyche became a Goddess and she and her husband had a daughter, Voluptas, who became the goddess of Pleasure. The marriage of Psyche and Cupid became a favorite topic of Classical and later Renaissance artists.

This sculpture developed from one of the groups in The Gates of Hell (the bronze portal and doors for the new Museum of Decorative Arts, Paris, which Rodin was asked to design in 1880). Rodin explored the subject over a number of years, the earliest dating from before 1886, and produced it in several other versions, as well as drawing it repeatedly.

This marble version was probably carved by his trusted assistants and technicians, under his supervision, as was normal workshop practice at the time. The contrast of the rough-hewn rock with the smooth surface of the figures indicates Rodin's admiration for the work of Michelangelo.

First place in the "Mythology" contest sponsored by "Geek Art And Funky Greeting Cards Etc" group 10/13/2021.

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July 6th, 2018

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