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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
National
Trisha Thomas and Wyatte Grantham-Philips

Botticelli's Venus is an 'influencer' and Italy is not happy

Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

The Italian tourism ministry thought it had a sure-fire way to bring travelers into the country: turning a 15th century art icon into a 21st century “virtual influencer.”

The digital rendition of Venus, goddess of love, based on Sandro Botticelli’s Renaissance masterpiece “Birth of Venus,” can be seen noshing on pizza and snapping selfies for her Instagram page. Unlike the original, this Venus is fully clothed. The influencer claims to be 30, or “maybe just a wee bit (older) than that.”

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