Allegory of Wisdom and Strength( The Choice of Hercules or Hercules and Omphale) 1584

Paolo Veronese painted this "Allegory of Wisdom and Strength" with oil on canvas sometime in the 16th century. Oil paint, of course, is a mixture of pigment and oil, typically linseed, walnut, or poppy. It allowed Veronese to build up layers of color and texture, creating depth and luminosity. But the real magic here is his bravura handling. Note how he evokes the textures of the figures' garments and the animal skin that Hercules drapes over his shoulder. This wasn't just Veronese’s individual virtuosity; it relied on workshop assistance. His was a family business, and paintings like these were exercises in managing production. The canvas itself would have been prepared by apprentices, and the underpainting likely as well. The allegory suggests a hierarchy of labor, just as much as it presents a philosophical contrast between virtue and vice. It speaks to a time when art was increasingly becoming enmeshed with the rising tide of capitalist production. By focusing on the materials and the making, we gain a much richer sense of this painting's significance.