05 Works, February 14th, is Lupercalia/ Saint Valentine's Day, With Footnotes - #45

Maria Rachele Branca

Lupercus, Lupercus, the protector of the harvest and farmers

Mixed technique on canvas

80×60 cm

I have no further description, at this time

In a refined contrast with a material background, the delicate and idealized line of Maria Rachele Branca , which distinguishes her style in the lyricism of a mythologized folklore, suspends the scene in the allusion to the invasive sound of the flute which bewitches the nymph sitting on it next to. And precisely in underlining its predatory instinct, the canvas accentuates the potential for prosperity of LUPERCUS FAUNUS in a good omen invoked for the territory. More on this painting

Lupercalia was an ancient pastoral annual festival observed in the city of Rome between February 13 and February 15, to avert evil spirits and purify the city, releasing health and fertility.

At the Lupercal altar, a male goat and a dog were sacrificed by one or another of the Luperci, under the supervision of the Flamen dialis, Jupiter's chief priest, after which two of the Luperci were led to the altar, their foreheads were touched with a bloody knife, and the blood was wiped off with wool dipped in milk  Next the Luperci cut thongs from the flayed skin of the animal, and ran with these, naked or near-naked, in an anticlockwise direction around the hill. These gross whips were called, februare.

Maria Rachele «Since I was a child I had a passion for artistic expression which manifested itself with a particular talent in drawing. So when it came time to choose the address for high school I chose the Art Institute even if it meant taking the bus from Bagnoli every morning at dawn. I began to develop a bond with art, but I didn't think of myself as an artist, I felt a strong pleasure in entering the churches of my small town, studying its culture, learning the traditions of the area».

After the 1980 earthquake, she moved to Florence, where she chose to attend the Academy of Fine Arts, specializing in Sculpture: «I've always been fascinated by the idea of ​​plasticity, the possibility of creating works in the round, of manipulating materials to create what's in my head. Mine was a double path. If the Art Institute laid the foundations for a future as an artisan, allowing me to get to know the subject in depth, the Academy taught me to use ceramics for an artistic and not just functional use. So I began to do research thanks also to the teachings of Maestro Vincenzo Bianchi, a mentor in sculpture training». More on Maria Rachele

Baccafumi Dominico

Lupercalia

634 × 460

Museo Casa Martelli

Baccafumi Dominico

Lupercalia

Museo Casa Martelli

Domenico di Pace Beccafumi (1486 – May 18, 1551) was an Italian Renaissance-Mannerist painter active predominantly in Siena. He is considered one of the last undiluted representatives of the Sienese school of painting.

Domenico was born in Montaperti, near Siena, the son of Giacomo di Pace, a peasant who worked on the estate of Lorenzo Beccafumi. Seeing his talent for drawing, Lorenzo adopted him, and commended him to learn painting from Mechero, a lesser Sienese artist. In 1509 he traveled to Rome, where he learned from the artists who had just done their first work in the Vatican, but soon returned to Siena. In Siena, he painted religious pieces for churches and of mythological decorations for private patrons, only mildly influenced by the gestured Mannerist trends dominating the neighboring Florentine school. More on Domenico di Pace Beccafumi

Many of the noble youths and of the magistrates run up and down through the city naked, for sport and laughter striking those they meet with the shaggy thongs. And many women of rank also purposely get in their way, and like children at school present their hands to be struck. During Lupercalia, the men randomly chose a woman’s name from a jar to be coupled with them for the duration of the festival. Often, the couple stayed together until the following year’s festival. Many fell in love and married.

Andrea Camassei

Lupercalia, Ca. 1635. 

Oil on canvas

Height: 238 cm.; Width: 366 cm.

Museo Nacional del Prado

Andrea Camassei (November 1602 – 1649) was an Italian Baroque painter and engraver, who was mainly active in Rome under the patronage of the Barberini.

He was born in Bevagna in Umbria; and beame active in painting in the Palazzo Barberini as well as in Antonio Barberini's favored church, Santa Maria della Concezione, where he painted the Assumption of the Virgin on the dome. He painted a Triumph of Constantine for the Baptistery of the Lateran Palace, and painted for Taddeo Barberini, two large canvases (1638–39) depicting Massacre of the Niobids and Hunt of Diana. He also painted a Saints Bonaventura, Bernardino & Ludovico da Tolosa for Santa Caterina in Rapecchiano (Spello). More on Andrea Camassei

Lupercalia was also celebrated by the Christian populace on a regular basis into the reign of the emperor Anastasius. Pope Gelasius I (494–96) claimed that only the "vile rabble" were involved in the festival and sought its forceful abolition. Pope Gelasius I eliminated the pagan feast and declared February 14 a day to celebrate the martyrdom of Saint Valentine instead, although it’s highly unlikely he intended the day to commemorate love and passion.

Unknown iconographer

St. Valentine

Although the Roman Catholic Church continues to recognize St. Valentine as a saint of the church, he was removed from the General Roman Calendar in 1969 because of the lack of reliable information about him. He is the patron saint of lovers, epileptics, and beekeepers. More on St. Valentine

Please visit my other blogs: Art Collector, Mythology, Marine Art, Portrait of a Lady, The Orientalist, Art of the Nude and The Canals of Venice, Middle East Artists, and visit my Boards on Pinterest

Images are copyright of their respective owners, assignees or others. Some Images may be subject to copyright

I don't own any of these images - credit is always given when due unless it is unknown to me. if I post your images without your permission, please tell me.

I do not sell art, art prints, framed posters or reproductions. Ads are shown only to compensate the hosting expenses.

If you enjoyed this post, please share with friends and family.

Thank you for visiting my blog and also for liking its posts and pages.

Please note that the content of this post primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online.