The Power and Mystery of Cranach's Artistic Intention

Cranach the Elder was one of the artistic hearts of the German Reformation, and was a close associate of Martin Luther, pictured here in a portrait from Cranach the Elder's Workshop, completed around 1532. It currently hangs at the Met.

Cranach the Elder's intentions with his portrayal of The Judgment of Paris is unclear to art historians, but several theories have been put forward. Scenes for mythology were frequently painted as a way to justify portraying the nude female body, so some art historians suggest that the painting is an excuse on Cranach the Elder’s part to titillate. Another theory holds that Cranach the Elder painted as the scene as a marital reminder to wives that their husbands married them for love rather than advantage. Paris chose Venus as the fairest goddess in exchange for the love of Helen of Troy, not for the power or cunning that Juno and Minerva offered.  

Cranach the Elder placed Luther's thoughts in artistic form, such as in this painting, The Law and the Gospel, which portrays the Lutheran belief that faith is the only path to heaven. His association with Reformation and humanistic thought lends signficant credence to the theory that The Judgment of Paris is meant to be interpreted in an humanistic light.

The prevailing theory is that Cranach the Elder, a classic Reformation figure, painted The Judgment of Paris as a sharp lesson in humanism. Each goddess represents a potential life path: Minerva is the vita contemplativa, the life of contemplation and scholasticism; Juno is the vita activa, the life of work and practicality; Venus is the vita volupturia, the life of pleasure and the senses. Paris chose Venus and began the Trojan War, expending hundreds of lives over a beauty pageant. In The Judgment of Paris, Cranach the Elder’s painting becomes a warning not to make the same misguided choice as Paris and instead choose the vita contemplativa, the model life of the humanistic movement. 

Cranach the Elder's close interest in Reformation and humanistic thought supports this view, but the indistinguishability of the goddesses has given pause to many historians. If they were meant to represent alternate modes of life, then they would’ve needed to been distinguished for each mode of life. Their indistinguishability makes sense in the context of the myth as part of the agony of Paris’ choice is that the goddesses were all similar in beauty, but it weakens the claim that Cranach the Elder was attempting to put forth any particular philosophical agenda. 

While an exact answer will likely never be known due to the age of the painting, the swirl of possible meanings reflects the many motives that surrounded art at the time -- commercialistic, classical, and religious -- and will continue to inspire debate for years to come.