Prehistoric Art

 The word "Venus" is commonly associated with the goddess Venus. When thinking of the goddess Venus the image that is linked to the word for most is a slim, nude, elegant woman who is modestly covering up her breasts and pubic area. Therefore, the name Venus of Willendorf seems to be somewhat unfitting for the prehistoric figure. Her name is in fact mocking her bulbous form. "Venus Pudica" is the name used to often describe the goddess Venus, who is trying to modestly cover her naked self. While the Venus of Willendorf is proudly showing her body, and making no effort to hide her figure. The term venus in this case becomes somewhat problematic because many identify the word venus with a woman that looks nothing like the prehistoric figure, as well as the name was merely a joke poking fun at the female's voluptuous figure. The Venus of Willendorf has large breasts, a gorging belly, and an exaggerated pubic triangle. This figure clearly represents the female form, however there is no real identity linked to this body. The faceless body shows us that the purpose of the figure was not to represent one individual, but to put emphasis on the female form. It is believed by many that the social and cultural purpose of this figure was to represent fertility. This well-nourished body may have been somewhat of a good luck charm for a pregnant woman  or a woman trying to become pregnant. A healthy body similar to the figure would be capable of reproducing well-nourished babies, which would result in the continuation of her clan. The Venus of Willendorf is often discussed and is a good starting point when learning about prehistoric artwork because the Venus of Willendorf is not the only "venus" we have seen from the prehistoric time period. We see fertility images very close in style from places all over. Thus showing that these figures had a great significance to many prehistoric people. Reading the article about the Venus of Wilendorf opened my eyes to how women's body image has changed so drastically. To me this figure is a refreshing take on the female form, seeing as nowadays a woman's body is only beautiful is she is thin. The media has warped our view on body image and our ideals of beauty, which has become somewhat concrete in our society. I feel as is the writer of the article has become quite accustom to these ideals, making the representation of the female form sound almost foreign.