Cupido op schaatsen c. 1701

This is a drawing of Cupid on skates by Jacob Toorenvliet. The winged god of love, bow in hand, brings to mind the allegorical tradition of representing abstract concepts through human figures. Cupid's bow and arrow, symbols of desire, echo through time, from ancient Greek depictions of Eros to Renaissance paintings. However, here, the skates add a twist—a playful, Northern European sensibility. The skates, a novel addition, suggest the fleeting, sometimes unsteady nature of love itself. Consider the 'pathos formula' ingrained in our collective memory: the figure in motion, conveying a psychological state. Cupid’s gesture evokes the precarious balance of emotions, capturing the viewer's empathy on a deeply human level. Thus, Cupid on skates encapsulates the enduring power of symbols, their meanings evolving yet forever tethered to the past, resurfacing in new forms and contexts.