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Atalanta and Hippomenes
Guido Reni · Baroque & Dutch Golden Age
- Artist
- Guido Reni (1575–1642)
- Date
- c. 1618–1619
- Dimensions
- 206 x 297 cm
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Location
- Museo del Prado, Madrid, Spain
This painting shows the race between the swift huntress Atalanta and her suitor Hippomenes. Atalanta bends down to pick up a golden apple, while Hippomenes, his body stretched in a long diagonal, runs past her towards victory.
A closer look
In the ancient myth told by Ovid, Atalanta would marry only the man who could beat her in a footrace; those who lost were put to death. Hippomenes, helped by the goddess Venus, dropped three golden apples during the race; Atalanta could not resist stopping to pick them up, and he won. Reni turns the story into an elegant, almost dance-like composition: the two pale, idealised nude bodies form a great X across the canvas against a dark sky and a low horizon, and the swirling drapery underlines their movement. The cool, balanced beauty is typical of Reni's classical Baroque style.