Pictures of Venus and Cupid
(Aphrodite and Eros)

Many pictures of Venus and Cupid (or, with their Greek names, Aphrodite and Eros) render a very calm family atmosphere, a mom playing with her son.

(Please be patient while page loads, it contains mainly images.)

Sometimes she consoles him:

Cupid complaining to Venus Lucas Cranach the Elder

Venus Consoling Love Francois Boucher

Sometimes he helps his mother to make herself beautiful.

Venus and Cupid Guillaume Seignac

The same painting as above, but with sharper contours (frankly, I like the first one, the light is softer and sweeter).

Venus and Cupid Maxfield Parrish

Venus at her Toilet, from...

European Mannerist Painti...

Very often Cupid holds the mirror for Venus.

Venus with Cupid and Mirror Peter Rubens

The Toilet of Venus, c.1613 Peter Rubens

The Toilet of Venus (The Rokeby Venus) Diego Velazquez

I like most the paintings in which they appear close to each other, just like any mother with her child.

Venus Reclining on Cloud Giovanni Cipriani

Venus and Putti Noel Halle

Venus with an Organist and Cupid, c.1... Titian

The Education of Cupid, c.1565 Titian

Venus and Cupid Giovanni Pellegrini

Venus and Cupid

Sometimes the painter wanted to render an allegory.

An Allegory with Venus an... Agnolo Bronzino

They also appear in this allegory of Spring (Venus is the figure in the middle, above her there is Cupid, shooting an arrow, blind-folded).

Primavera Sandro Botticelli

In these paintings the whole family is together, Venus, Cupid and Mars.

Venus and Mars, Victory and Cupid Paris Bordone

Allegory (Venus, Mars, Flora, Cupid)

The mother and son were represented together with other gods, too.

Venus with Mercury and Cu... Correggio

Venus, Satyr and Cupid, 1... Correggio

Ceres, Bacchus, Venus and Cupid Cornelis Poelenburgh

The goddess Diana was the only one who was allowed to refuse love and this is the meaning of this painting.

Diana Breaking Cupid's Bow, 1761 Pompeo Batoni

There is also another version about the birth of Eros/Cupid: he was the born in the beginning, from the primordial Chaos, together with Gaea, the Earth. Maybe that explains why in some paintings he is already present at the birth of Aphrodite/Venus (or maybe the painters just wanted to make it clear they were representing the goddess of love, so they also added the god of love).

The Birth of Venus Alexandre Cabanel

The Birth of Venus, 1879 William-Adolphe Bouguereau

For pictures of Cupid, click here.