Jupiter, Mercury and Virtue 1524

Curator: Oh, this has a deliciously weird energy. I love the otherworldly pallor of Mercury's skin set against those warm earthy tones... and the butterflies. So unexpected. Editor: It certainly does. What we’re looking at is Dosso Dossi’s oil painting, “Jupiter, Mercury, and Virtue,” created around 1524. The work resides here at the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, and it’s a striking example of Italian Renaissance allegory. Curator: Allegory. Okay, immediately takes the fun out of it... No, just kidding! Seriously, though, my gut reaction is simply enchanted chaos. You've got this brooding Jupiter diligently painting, of all things, butterflies. It feels wonderfully subversive, a bit like divine procrastination, perhaps? Editor: I see your point. These mythical figures are taken out of their usual heroic narratives and placed in a somewhat bizarre tableau. But the subversion, if there is one, points to larger social critique. Consider that Virtue is almost forcibly silenced by Mercury. I think the question becomes, who benefits from silencing virtue, or rather, alternative truth? Curator: Interesting! It also occurs to me that she’s placed on the very edge of the composition; destabilized. What's Dosso trying to imply? And why is Mercury all, "Shhh!" with the classical "finger to the lips" gesture? Is it about hidden knowledge? Editor: It’s compelling, right? Perhaps Dossi implies that truth is fragile and easily suppressed by power represented by Mercury's and Jupiter's positions. Think about the period; the Reformation was underway, challenging established doctrines. Could the painting be commenting on those power struggles and the silencing of dissenting voices? Curator: Hmmm. What a tangle we have. Jupiter, distracted and making pretty things while larger power struggles… Okay, this image now is speaking to our times quite acutely! I felt an initial joyfulness, which has slowly morphed into dread. Which is also exciting! Editor: I agree. I think it’s in that very tension – beauty versus control, knowledge versus silence - where this work really speaks to us today. Curator: Definitely, there’s a playful ambiguity here, but at the same time the piece reveals unsettling questions about art and society. I will spend much time pondering over that “Shhh” gesture. Editor: Absolutely, and I’m struck by the way that Dossi provokes us to consider art as a potential conduit for subversion or conformity depending on whose interests it serves.