1543
ink
paper
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
Venus and Mars Embracing with Vulcan at his Forge is a 1543 ink by Enea Vico, a Renaissance work, held at National Gallery of Art.
This engraving shows a chaotic scene with three figures. On the left, a muscular man and woman are wrapped around each other in a bed, half-naked and tangled. Behind them, a bearded man hammers metal at an anvil, with tools and a half-finished object beside him. On the floor, a small child plays with a sea creature that looks like a mix of fish and snake. The artist used sharp lines and shading to show muscle and movement, especially in the lovers’ twisted bodies. The forge area has fine details like hammer marks and sparks flying off the metal. Look up engraving to see how artists like this one carved images into metal plates.
Enea Vico (29 January 1523 – 18 August 1567) was an Italian engraver. Vico was born in Parma. He specialized in grotesque engravings based on antique paintings. Vico made engravings for Cosimo I de' Medici, Grand Duke…
See the richer artist page
![Fragments from Ancient Cameos in the Grimani Collection [Plate I]](https://pub-3a17a9933ad74fb28aa30fa758592f23.r2.dev/artworks/1f564c058ab46ade/thumb.webp)
![Fragments from Ancient Cameos in the Grimani Collection [Plate II]](https://pub-3a17a9933ad74fb28aa30fa758592f23.r2.dev/artworks/6333de7ba7491db7/thumb.webp)
![Fragments from Ancient Cameos in the Grimani Collection [Plate III]](https://pub-3a17a9933ad74fb28aa30fa758592f23.r2.dev/artworks/bf2c0f15852500f8/thumb.webp)