Simonetta Vespuci - Leggenda d’amore

Original size: 46/87cm  ​
Botticelli’s masterpieces Primavera (c. 1482) and The Birth of Venus (c. 1485); are probably Botticelli’s best known works and are among the most famous paintings in the world, and icons of the Italian Renaissance.
 
From the very beginning of my work of art, I was drawn to Botticelli’s paintings; his female images were “talking” to me, as they talk to everyone looking at his paintings. It was and still is a strong feeling of an affinity to them as they are part of some of my collages.
This collage of mine was made after reading about Simonetta Vespucci, the model of feminine beauty of Florence in the middle of the sixteenth century. I knew the story, but I did not plane the collage nor did I know what it is saying. I am learning it now, while watching it and writing those things for you and me.

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Simonetta Vespucci was a wonder, a living nymph who possessed qualities such as beauty and modesty that made her an object of admiration that was characteristic at that time.  She was and always will be at the center of a love story, Leggenda d’amore, involving, Giuliano di Lorenzo de' Medici (1479 –1516) the third son of Lorenzo the Magnificent, and a ruler of Florence, and Alessandro di Mariano di Vanni Filipepi, known as Sandro Botticelli (1445 –1510).
In the 15th century, Simonetta Vespucci (1453-1476) was known as la bella Simonetta in northern Italy and considered to be the greatest beauty of her time.  At the age of sixteen Simonetta Cattaneo was married, to Marco Vespucci, that his family was well connected in Florence, especially to the Medici family. She became instantly popular at the Florentine court; especially by the brothers, Lorenzo and Giuliano Medici.

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Giuliano fell in love with her even though she was a married woman.  in 1475 he commissioned Botticelli, that was under the patronage of Lorenzo de' Medici, to paint a banner for him for the celebration held at the Piazza Santa Croce, in order to celebrated a military alliance of Florence, Milan and Venice. This was the first time Botticelli draw Simonetta Vespucci.  Guiliano de Medici entered the lists bearing a banner with a picture of Simonetta as a helmeted Pallas Athena, with the French inscription La Sans Pareille, meaning "The unparalleled one". Giuliano won the tournament, and Simonetta was nominated than, as “The Queen of Beauty”.  
One year later, at the age of twenty-two, Simonetta Vespucci died of tuberculosis on the night of 26–27 April 1476. She was carried through the city in an open coffin for all to admire her beauty and since then she became a myth.
Botticelli captured her beauty by his memories and kept on painting her. Many of the women in his paintings since then looked very much like her. At his painting The Birth of Venus, also commissioned by Guiliano de Medici, depicts Simonetta as the goddess Venus arriving at the shore after her birth, when she had emerged from the sea as fully-grown Venus. This painting was finished around 1486, ten years after her death.
Some claim that Botticelli was in love with Simonetta, a love  he expressed through the numerous portraits that he made, but he could not declared publicly.                                                                                      
Botticelli that never married asked to be buried in the Church of Ognissanti – the parish church of the Vespucci, in Florence, at the foot of Simonetta’s grave. His wish was carried out 34 years later, when he died in 1510. On his grave, is written, Alessandro di Mariano di Vanni Filipepi, his full mane. He was buried there, as he wished for, as a man, not the painter known as Sandro Botticelli, at the foot of his beloved one. Since then, he and Simonetta lay side by side in the chiesa di San Salvatore di Ognissanti.
There is no way to know how the real story was. Who was Simonetta’s love? Was it her husband?  Guiliano de Medici? Or was it Alessandro di Mariano di Vanni Filipepi, Sandro Botticelli?

In my story Simonetta Vespucci is in love with Botticelli. Her image as Venus is at the center of this collage, standing in a garden with Cupid and an angel beside her. In one hand, as Venus she represent love, but at the other hand, she is a young woman dreaming of a truth love that it is part of her life.
They met when he was a well known painter at the age of 30 working for the Medici family and she, a 22 year’s old beautiful married lady, loved and adored by everyone that sees her. She agreed to be painted by him in the request of Guiliano de Medici. Knowing that he is in love with her, and that he is a man with great power in Florence, there was no way she could have say No to him. But also, she loved to see herself in painting cherishing her beauty.
They met for this painting, looked at each other eyes, Simonetta and Botticelli felt butterflies in their hearts and stomachs but could not say a thing. They met few more times but could not talk either. He painted her, and she dreamt of walking with him hand in hand in the garden, telling each other about their love. They both knew it was not able to happen in their life time.
 But here, in this collage, she is looking straight at Guiliano’s eyes, trying to yell her love out to the world, telling with her eyes what she cannot talk about, that her love and passion are held for Botticelli.

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Another female is looking at her. Her image is taken from Botticelli’s painting “The Youth of Moses” (1481–1482), the Sistine Chapel, Rome. Zipporah, is mentioned in the Book of Exodus as Jethro's daughter and the wife of Moses.  The meaning of this word/name Zipporah (or Tzipora) in Hebrew is "bird".
Zipporah is holding a distaff, a tool used in spinning and serves as a symbol of time. Spinning was a woman’s activity and as a Female symbolism is marked in the rites of the cycle of life.  For a girl to be a good spinner, her navel was cut at birth on the spin. 
The term distaff is also used as an adjective to describe the matrilineal branch of a family (e.g., the "distaff side" of a person's family refers to the person's mother and her blood relatives in contrary to the “spear side”, which is the man’s side. The word “distaff” has been used since the 14th century as a symbol of women’s work. The symbolism of spinning gave magic qualities to the distaff.
Reuel's daughters came to water their father's flocks. Other shepherds arrived and drove them away so they could water their own flocks. Moses defended the girls and watered their flock. They returned home early than ever and told their father about Moses, the Egyptian, that help and rescued them. Their father ordered them to invite the Egyptian for supper. Reuel then gave Moses Zipporah as his wife (Exodus 2:21).
Zipporah was giving as a wife to Moses by her father, just like Simonetta was giving by her father as wife to Marco Vespucci, because his family was well connected to the Medici family.
In this collage, Zipporah, holding the distaff, as a symbol for the chain of knowledge of all women before her, whispering Simonetta, encourage her listen to and follow her heart.

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The other woman standing near the pit, in Botticelli’s picture, is probably a portrait of Simonetta Vespucci). 
As the symbol of time, the Passion fruit flowers bellow, represent the hope that time is the cure for this unimplemented love, while Zipporah, and the distaff are “calling” her for action.
Passion fruit flowers also referred to as “Passiflora Caerulea” refers to the passion of Jesus in Christian theology. The flower has been given names related to this symbolism throughout Europe since that time. Outside the Roman Catholic heartland, these flowers have reminded people of the face of a clock. In Israel they are known as "clock-flower" (שעונית) in Greece "clock plant" in Japan, they are known as "clock plant" an in Hawaiian, they are called lilikoʻi;   that is a string used for tying fabric together, such as a shoelace, and liko means "to spring forth leaves".
The horse is a metaphor and an example of life's mystery and unpredictability and a symbol of Generosity, Beauty, Power, Grace, Nobility, Strength and Freedom. Most of them, but the last two, can depict Simonetta Vespucci. Being a young woman she might have had strength, but I am sure she didn’t have freedom, but the freedom of dreaming. She is looking down at her image of woman that is not afraid. Maybe she was listening to Zipporah and decided tell Guiliano what are her truth feelings that she is in love, but not with him.
 

• Simonetta Vespucci  Detail of the Venus figure in “la Primavera” by Sandro Botticelli, 1482
• Woman’s head, one of the Three Graces from “la Primavera”, Botticelli.
• Men’s head, Giuliano di Lorenzo de' Medici, detail from Giuliano's Statue in the Medici-Chapel, (It is a detail from the marble sculpture on his grave that is an idealized portrait of him).  Created by Michelangelo by Michelangelo (1526–34).
• Zipporah, Jethro's daughter, detail from “The Youth of Moses” by Sandro Botticelli 1481–1482 Sistine Chapel, Rome 
• Cupid, Meissen porcelain 1900

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