Analysis
The Feast of Gods is an impressive painting. But what is the meaning of this piece? Let’s go back to the 1500s. Alfonso d’Este, a young duke, inherited the estate of Ferrara in Italy. Fond of the arts and with the help of classical scholar Mario Equicola, he planned to decorate the Alabaster Chamber of his castle with six fables. The first of the six fables was The Feast of Gods.
The Feast of Gods represents a celebration held by Bacchus, the god of wine. Alfonso had commissioned Bellini to create the first bacchanal (a painting that worships Bacchus). All of the bacchanals commissioned had a common subject, love. What is significant about this is that in The Feast of Gods, Bacchus is portrayed as a child. In classical paintings Bacchus is characterized as four different ages, each representing a season of the year. The Feast of Gods is a celebration in the wintertime; therefore Bacchus is portrayed as an infant or child. It is suggested that Mario Equicola came up with the theme as a representation of Alfonso d’Este and Lucrezia Borgia’s wedding.
After Bellini’s death Alfonso had his court painter Dosso Dossi work the background of The Feast of Gods, and then Titian was commissioned to alter the painting as well. As the owner of The Feast of Gods, Alfonso felt that it was his to alter. This was not an uncommon thought process for the time period, as artists rarely owned their own pieces. Titian and Dossi left Bellini’s figures intact but made changes to the background. What used to be a line of trees in the background is now a large hill and foliage to the right. Through an x-radiograph you can see Bellini’s original background. After comparing the two backgrounds, I do think in my personal opinion that Titian’s background aids to the composition of this work. The trees to the right lead my eyes down and across the figures back up to the large hill in the background.
The Feast of Gods is a depiction of Ovid’s The Feasts. The craftsmanship of this painting is phenomenal considering that Bellini was trained to paint on wooden panels and not canvas. His brushwork is precise and detailed. Bellini’s eye for color and portrayal of natural lighting creates a realistic celebration outdoors. But I do question Alfonso’s actions towards The Feast of Gods. If Alfonso enjoyed the arts then why did he not respect Bellini’s portrayal of The Feast of Gods? He had two other artists work over the painting after the death of Bellini. Alfonso did commission the work so it was his property but I do not agree with allowing other artists to change a painting by another artist.
After seeing The Feast of Gods at the National Gallery of Art and researching this painting, I have grown to love it even more. It has a great history behind it and the portrayal of The Feasts is mesmerizing. It is one of my favorite paintings in the Italian Renaissance era as it epitomizes many of the characteristics of Renaissance artwork.