Painted by Sandro Botticelli in 1482, this painting also known as the Allegory of Spring includes numerous citations of mythological stories. Featured within its scope are the Three Graces, Flora, Mercury, and Zephyrus and Chloris. The bodies of these characters themselves are interesting in that all of them are in some way seemingly bloated. Zephyrus' cheeks are puffed out and all of the midsections of each woman appears almost pregnant. Being a depiction of spring and its flourishing natural state, perhaps these women are swollen with impending life. Their forms could also be Botticelli's attempt at emphasizing the softness of the feminine form and their ability to birth new life--a less rolly-polly approach to the female body than Ruben.
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