Titan, Bacchus and Ariadne, 1520

You know what really sucks? Having to leave your family to follow your heart and your boyfriend. You know what is even worse? Having to help him escape a minotaur and risking your life to do so. Want to know the really,really bad part? Having him abandon you on the island, Naxos. Yeah, sucks to by Ariadne. But, as usual love finds a way into her life once again in the form of the god of merriment and drinking, Bacchus.

Titian painted Bacchus and Ariadne in 1520 for the Duke Alfonso’s private dining room. Titian was not the only artist to do a piece of art work for the Duke, he also commissioned artists like Bellini to add to his collection of art inspired by classical mythology. There is something rich and rewarding when feasting your eyes on this Titian. The movement that Titian gives the painting truly helps encompass the viewer in the scene. As the entourage following Bacchus push toward Ariadne, she pushes outward helping add to a circular flow in the painting. She reaches out to the sea for her “love” who has abandoned her without any means of getting off the island. She locks eyes with Bacchus who is in mid-leap to embrace the woman he has become infatuated with. The scene takes on a joyous feel as the cheetahs, satyrs, and other uncommon friends join in the merriment of the moment. The colors bring the tantalizing feeling of new love to life. The blue hues in the sky and Ariadne's dress are a breath of fresh air to the mellow, darker colors on the right of the painting.

Above in the night sky is a starry crown in which Bacchus transfixed in the sky after Ariadne’s death. When they were married, he gave her a golden crown, and he wanted the world to forever remember the love they shared. Now if that’s not love, I don’t know what is. That bad day just got better.