Hide and Peek – Beautiful Bosom in Art: Simonetta Vespucci, Botticelli, Fragonard, Indian Art (Part I)

I have had the idea for this post for months now and finally it is here! The title “Hide and Seek” is clearly a pun on the game “Hide and Seek” because while looking at all those paintings, and I do enjoy nudes and erotic art, I couldn’t help but think how the bosom is often presented as “hiding” and “peeking” in these painting; hidden by clothes, hair or hands, and peeking out cheekily. There will be a second part of this post soon with more delicious paintings so stay tuned!

Piero di Cosimo, Portrait of Simonetta Vespucci, 1480 or 1490

The first painting in this post is a famous portrait of the Florentine beauty Simonetta Vespucci who died tragically young at the age of twenty-three in 1476. The portrait thus isn’t the realistic representation of Simonetta but more of a vision of her legendary beauty. The half-length portrait shows the woman from the profile. Dark clouds are gathering in the background, symbolising her early death, and there are some trees and a town in the background as well. There are many interesting details on Simonetta, from her elaborate hairstyle to the snakes around her neck, but still the most fetching detail is for sure her lovely bare bosom, small but firm and uptight.

Sandro Botticelli, The Birth of Venus, 1484-86

Another famous Renaissance masterpiece; Botticelli’s “The Birth of Venus” shows the birth of the goddess of love. Venus is seen standing naked on top of a shell, emerging from the seafoam. Her long golden hair is flowing around her and strategically covering her lower parts. The bosom is half-covered with her hand, but the other one is standing there firm and inviting. I love the contrast between her dreamy, slightly melancholy face expression and the eroticism of the rest of her.

Francesco Melzi, Flora (also La Columbina or Columbine), 1520

Francesco Melzi’s painting “Flora” shows a woman in the garden holding flowers in her hands and admiring them with a soft smile on her face. But let us be real, the painting would not be interesting at all were it not for the detail of the exposed bosom and the Renaissance artist probably knew this all too well. The flowers and the pretty fabric are all but decoys.

Gabrielle d’Estrées and one of her sisters is a painting by an unknown artist, c. 1594

The painting above shows Gabrielle d’Estrées, the mistress of King Henry IV of France, who is shown sitting nude in a bath and is holding a ring in her left hand. The woman in the bathtub next to her is her sister Julienne-Hyppolite-Joséphine who is elegantly pinching her right nipple. This is definitely an unusual and naughty scene and I wonder what the artist had in mind when he was painting the scene.

Dosso Dosi, Circe and Her Lovers in a Landscape, 1525

I always had a thing for Dosso Dosi’s painting “Circe and Her Lovers in a Landscape” because of the background story. Circe, who is portrayed here as a hippie gal, naked and free, with flowers in her hair, was an enchantress who was unlucky in love and her misery lead her to vengeance. In Ovid’s Metamorphoses one particular example is told in which Circe falls for the hero Picus who rejects her and Circe then turns him into a woodpecker. The painting thus implies that all the animals used to be men who rejected her.

Jean-Honoré Fragonard, Allegory of Vigilance, c 1772

In Fragonard’s painting “Allegory of Vigilance” the provocation of the peeking bosom is so obvious that I just had to include this painting in this post! The painting shows a blushing young girl seen from the profile. She is all rosy and flowery and feminine with flowers in her hair and the peachy-rosy garment. The bosom is exposed in such a delicate way that is almost feels natural, not naughty.

Fragonard, Useless Resistence, 1770-73

Jean-Honore Fragonard’s “Useless Resistence” is so wonderfully naughty in that typically Rococo way and I love it. The painting shows a man and a woman on the bed in a love embrace. He is holding her wrist firmly and grabbing her clothes; the resistence is indeed futile. The brush strokes here, especially around the woman’s white blouse, are stunning, even more Impressionist than Rococo. And the woman’s snow white bosom is peeking out of the blose and it is such a lovely detail.

Jean-Honoré Fragonard, Young Girl Kissing a Cat, no date

Another lovely, delicate and playful painting by Fragonard which shows a young girl holding a cute white dog in her arms lovingly. She is half-dressed or rather half-undressed in casual white garments which again have those big, sketchy brushstrokes which remind me of Impressionism, and her bosom is exposed in a dainty way. I particulary enjoy the way the nipple is portrayed here, in a single brushtrokes, like a little cherry on top.

A lady on a terrace, c.1700, Bikaner, Rajasthan

On this beautiful early eighteenth century miniature from Rajasthan we see a lady sitting on the terrace on a beautiful floral yellow carpet. There is a serene lotus pond behind her and the sky above is dreamy in lilac and orange. The lady is holding a cup of wine in her hand, her long hair is flowing down her back and she is all adorned with jewellery. Also, for some reason, her breasts are exposed and it is certainly eye-catching.