Standbeeld van Amor met naast zich zijn pijlenkoker 1636 - 1647

Giovanni Luigi Valesio created this print, "Statue of Amor with his quiver next to him," sometime between the late 16th and early 17th centuries. During Valesio’s time, the canonization of beauty often excluded those who did not fit a very narrow definition of what was considered beautiful or desirable. What I find striking about this image of Amor is how the artist challenges the conventions of idealized beauty. Here, Amor is youthful, winged, and nude but, unlike many depictions of the god of love, this Amor looks muscular and robust. Valesio's Amor doesn’t just embody an ethereal ideal; he's solid, present, and strong. He strikes me as a being capable of fierce love. Consider what it means to reimagine figures of mythology. Valesio invites us to reconsider our expectations of beauty, desire, and the body itself. It is a gentle, loving revolution.