Art History Stuffme

Nicola Pisano, Baptistry Pulpit, 1260, Pisa

• Made of marble • Inscription with his name and

date• 5 almost square reliefs• Round arches• Relief panels resemble the

sculptured front of a roman sarcophagus• Columns – gothic variation of

Corinthian

Nicola Pisano, Nativity, 1260, Baptistry Pulpit, Pisa

• December 25th, Feast Day, Christmas• March 25th, annunciation• Shepherds• Size represents importance• Mary’s perpetual virginity increased her divinity• resembles lid figures on Roman sarcophagi - Mary

appears twice each different sizes - The reclining Mary is the focus of the sculpture - Mary's posture and drapery are reminiscent of those of the lid figures on Etruscan and Roman sarcophagi - Scholars have been able to pin point the models of the Pulpit figures on Roman sarcohpagi in Pisa - Worked in a classical tradition

• classical sculpture inspired the face types, beards, coiffures, and draperies, as well as the bulk and weight of the figures

Giotto, Lamentation, Arena (Scrovengi) Chapel, c. 1305, Padua, Italy

• Very emotional, can see the grief on the faces and in their movement

• Drapery – modeling (light and shadow to create folds)

• Hill points to focal point at Jesus and everyone is looking at Jesus

• Foreshortening – when an object of form is painted perpendicularly to the picture plane to give the illusion that the object extends into space

• Typology – scene from old testament foreshadows a scene from the new testament

• Giotto used the diagonal slpe of the rocky landscape to direct the viewer's attention toward the head of the sculpturesque figure of the dead Christ - Giotto's stately and slow moving actors present their dramas convincingly and with great restraint - In the presence of boldly foreshortened andgels, seen head on with their bodies receding into the background and darting about in hysterical grief, a congregagtion mourns over the dead body of the Savior just before its entombment - Mary cradles her son's body, while Mary Magdalene looks solemnly at the wounds in Christ's feet and Saint John the Evangelist throws his arms back dramatically - Postures and destures that might have been only rhetorical and mechanical convey, in Lamentation, a broad spectrum of grief - In Lamentation, a single event provokes an intense response - Each group within the constructed space has its own definition, and each contributes to the rhythmic order of the composition - Figures see from the back, represent an innovation in the development away from the formal Italo-Byzantine style - These figures emphasize the foreground, aiding the visual placement of the intermediate figures farther back in space - the light falls upon the upper surfaces of the figures and passes down to dark in their draperies, separating the volumes on from the other and pushing on to the for, the other to the rear.

Duccio, Maestà Altarpiece, 1308-11, Siena, Italy

• Siena was in a war with Florence and everyone goes to the Cathedral and prays to Mary to help them win the war against Florence. They won and wanted a bigger altarpiece for Mary to tank her for helping them win.

• Wood Panel, Tempera – egg yolk mixed with pigment, can take your time, more detail, more gem like paint

• Polyptych – panel painting• Base (prydella) has scenes from the infancy of

Jesus• Modeling• people prayed to Mary and not to God or Jesus

because they are the judges• It was a tough time to live in and people though

that God was punishing them

Duccio, Maestà Altarpiece, back, 1308-11, Siena, Italy

• All about the last week of Jesus’s life• Over 20 scenes• The front was seen by the visitors• The back was seen by the clergy• Washing of the Feet• The Last Supper• John portrayed next to Jesus, often leaning on Jesus• The trees separate the scenes in the painting• Repetition, vertical lines tie the paintings together• Jesus goes before 4 judges and all find him innocent, the

last judge washes his hands of responsibility of what happens to Jesus next

• Gold background is real gold (gold leaf)• Different pieces around the world• One piece in Kimbell Museum in Ft. Worth, TX (The

Raising of Lazarus)

Duccio, Entry into Jerusalem, Maestà Altarpiece, back, 1308-11, Siena, Italy

• Flat background• Modeling• People bowed and laid cloth on

the ground for Jesus

Duccio, Betrayal of Jesus, Maestà Altarpiece, back, 1308-11, Siena, Italy

• Judas betrays Jesus• Flat background• Trees separate scenes

Arnolfo Di Cambio, Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore (Duomo), Florence, Italy

• Submitted designs for a contest to complete the cathedral• The upper portion was done by Brunelleschi not Cambio• Cambio used a gothic style• 3 types of marble used• Brunelleschi brought back parts of Roman architecture• Oculus – circular opening (it means eye)• Oculi used as windows for the cathedral• The interior of the pantheon had an oculus and Brunelleschi

liked it• Buttresses• Used in the Colosseum and in the Cathedral of Santa Maria

del Fiore• Column and arch• Clearstory, window level of church• Dome, tallest in Italy until Michelangelo’s • Façade – outside of a building

Parts of a cathedral

• Narthex – entrance• Nave – center part• Side-aisle – sides of nave• Transept – sides• Apse – top part• Crossing – where the transept and nave meet• Bay – space between columns

Brunelleschi, Church of San Lorenzo, c. 1421 -1469, Florence, Italy (On Test)

• Outside façade was not finished• Inside is beautiful• Gray and white stone• Pagan form for Christian content• Round arches• Oculi• Coffering – square decoration• Corinthian column• Mini-entablature on columns• Modulo• Thought that gothic was illogical and Romans used

logical numbers in architecture• Height of the arch including the entablature is half the

height of the column including the plinth• Linear perspective

Michelozzo Di Bartolommeo, Medici Palace, begun 1446, Florence, Italy

• Ground floor arches used to be open• Rustication – looks unfinished• Prototype for other buildings

maybe• Political meeting held here

Arnolfo Di Cambio, Palazzo Vecchio, c. 1290s-1310

• Can see enemies, put in canons, and be able to pour hot liquid on enemies

Leon Battista Alberti, Church of Sant’ Andrea, designed 1470, Mantua, Italy

• Commissioned by Gonzaga• Alberti wrote books “on Painting,” “on Sculpture,” and “on

Architecture”• Argued for the rising status of the artist because they

worked with perspective and should be respected like mathematicians and scientist

• Classicism• His churches called temples• Triumphal Arch of Constantine prototype for the arches• Column arch• Pagan form for Christian content• Majestic interior• Coffering• Barrel vaults• Side chapels instead of side aisles• Side chapels work better, no one wonders off, unifies

people, keeps people focused on the mass

Donatello, Saint Mark, Or San Michele, c. 1411-16, Florence, Italy

• For the guild that worked in linen• Classical• Donatello went to Rome with Brunelleschi• Contrapposto stance• Face looks realistic, based off of sculptures made with death

masks• Stylized hair• Drapery – knee pokes though, small bulge around belt, like

how cloth would really behave• Wet drapery – how cloth would behave when wet, used for

clothes to have a more fluid and flowing look, helped to show movement and shape beneath the clothes donned by sculptures

• Like modeling• Looked at how cloth reacted to gravity• Holding a book• Standing on a cushion because the linen guild also sold cusions• All statues are now copies

Donatello, Saint George, Or San Michele, c. 1420 Florence, Italy

• Now in a museum• For the guild of Armorers and

Sword Makers because he was a warrior saint

Donatello, Saint George and the Dragon, relief below statue of Saint George, c. 1417, Florence Italy

• Fighting a dragon, a woman with wet drapery in contrapposto stance and round arches behind in background

• Until Donatello, artists carved reliefs with flat backgrounds

• Donatello showed background with trees and figures receding into space

• Rilievo Schiaciato (Flattened Relief) – forms near viewer are in higher relief, forms in the distance are in lower relief ( varying levels of relief from high, middle, and low for perspective)

Donatello, Feast of Herod, 1423-27, Baptismal Font, Siena, Italy

• Rilievo Schiaciato• Round arches• Roman profile• Wet drapery• Emotionalism – left blank space for you• Orthogonals – appears to recede into

space, draws us in• Transversals – cuts orthogonals• Linear perspective• entablature

Donatello, David, c. 1446-60, Florence, Italy

• Moved to a museum• Was in Medici palace• Nudity• Contrapposto stance• Chariot scene on Goliath’s helmet

was on a previous Medici commission• Prototype – Polykleitos, Spear

Bearer (Doryphoros), c. 450-440 BCE

Donatello, Gattamelata (“Cunning Cat”), 1445-53, Padua, Italy

• Statue of a military man• Immortalization of mortals is

recent• Condottiere – mercenaries• Increasing portraiture• Prototype – Marcus Aurelius c.

161-80 CE, Rome, Italy• Only equestrian statue from Rome to

make it to us• Prototype for most equestrian

statues

Lorenzo Ghiberti, Sacrifice of Isaac, 1425-52, East Doors, Baptistry, Florence, Italy

• Quatrefoil – four leaf clover shape• Flat background• All about grace

Ghiberti, Baptistry – East Doors (“Gates of Paradise”), 1425-52, Florence, Italy

• 10 Panels• All about the Old Testament• Quatrefoil gone• Rilievo Schiaciato

Gentile da Fabriano, Adoration of the Magi, Strozzi Altarpiece, 1423, Florence, Italy • Adoration of the magi

• Expensive• Lots of gold, gold leaf in garments• Garments are fancy• Original Location: Strozzi Chapel, Santa Trinita, Florence, Italy• Current Location: Uffizi• Very detailed, lots of figures, different expression on all the

faces• Foreshortening• Flat abstract background (gold)• Modeling• Realistic detail• Predella - painting or sculpture along the frame at the bottom

of an altarpiece. • All 3 scenes, real story• Nativity scene

• Fist time for the absence of the gold background, fist time cast shadows• Realistic – realism• Cast shadows different from shadows in modeling

Masaccio, The Tribute Money, c.1424-27, Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence, Italy

• Fresco• Cast shadows accordance with the light from the real window• About paying taxes• Florence worried about invasion, has no army• Wants to institute a tax to pay for an army• Catasto – tax• Clergy was usually tax exempt• Picture shows that God pays taxes so everyone should pay taxes,

clergy paid taxes too• First time fresco loses flat background• First time fresco uses cast shadow• Mountain in background• Atmospheric perspective – forms in distance are less distinct• Realism• Atmospheric perspective in painting parallels Rilievo Schiaciato in

sculpture• Wet drapery in sculpture parallels modeling in painting• Linear perspective modeling

Masaccio, Adam and Eve, c. 1424-27, Brancacci Chapel, Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence, Italy

• Prototype – Praxiteles, Aphrodite, c. 350 BCE• Pose• First life-size female nude

• Can see the joins in fresco art, see how many days it took, can see the cuts and the joins, artists try to smooth it out• Sinopie – fresco underpainting• Fresco cartoon

Masaccio, Holy Trinity, c. 1424-27, Brancacci Chapel, Santa Maria Novella, Florence, Italy

• The skeleton at the bottom and the inscription next to it says something like “I was once like you, and you shall one day be like me”• God in the back holding Jesus up• Saints standing next to Jesus• Commissioners painted below

saints

Fra Angelico, Annunciation, San Marco, Florence, Italy, c. 1438-1447

• Linear perspective• Round arches• Corinthian columns• Inscription – “As you venerate,

while passing before it, this figure of the intact Virgin, beware lest you omit to say a Hail Mary.”• background

Fra Filippo Lippi, Madonna and Child with Angels, c. 1460-65, Uffizi, Florence, Italy

• Private home• Small in size• Realism – realistic baby, slightly

blurred background• In Uffizi• Mary is cropped, more personal• Mary is the mother of God,

intercessor, and Queen of Heaven

Sandro Botticelli, Primavera, c. 1482, 6’8” x 10’4”, Uffizi, Florence, Italy

• Painted for Medici wedding• Primavera means spring• Venus in center• 1480s new subject matter• Medici had great thinkers around

them• Venus’s child Cupid above her head• The three graces with the portrait

of the bride• Zephyr, Chloris, Flora

Sandro Botticelli, Birth of Venus, c 1484-86, 5’9” x 9’2”, Uffizi, Florence, Italy

• Very elegant• Prototype – Praxiteles,

Aphrodite, c. 350 BCE• Aphrodite pose for Venus

Piero della Francesca, Federico da Montefeltro and Battista Sforza, c. 1472-74, Uffizi, Florence, Italy (On Test) • Surrounded by the greatest thinkers of the day

• Justice of Ghent? Brought oil painting to Italy, pigment mixed with walnut oil or linseed oil

• Had the map maker Columbus used to discover the Americas• More landscapes later• More exploration• Battista

• Married after 14th birthday• Gave birth to 9 children• First 8 were girls and the 9th was a boy• Died 6 monthes later• Was 26

• Atmospheric perspective• Realism - Artist could have idealized the people, but didn’t• Battista was painted from her death mask• Man dominating nature• Reflect the humanist books of the day• Classicism• Roman coins – profile pictures• First was Caesar• Emperor always in profile• Putti on panels• entablature• In Uffizi

Piero della Francesca, Federico da Montefeltro and Battista Sforza, back, c. 1472-74, Uffizi, Florence, Italy

• In chariots surrounded by their virtues• Justice, Prudence, and Fortitude

(Federico)• Faith, Charity, and Chastity (Battista)• Battista’s chariot pulled by unicorns• Landscape background• Inscriptions in Latin• Battista’s: “She is honored by the praise

of the accomplishments of her great husband.”

• Symbol of humanism

Master of Flémalle (Robert Campin), Mérode Altarpiece, c. 1425-28, Cloisters (Met), NYC

• Triptych – three pieces• 2ft high, 4ft wide• Hinged side panels• Closes evenly over the center piece• Annunciation• 3 characteristics of Northern Renaissance• Detail – windows with the city in the background,

books, tools, can read the words in the books, other items around in the painting, wood shavings on the table

• Realism – realistic looking• Symbolism – white flower (lily) Symbol of purity, book

open to prophecy of virgin birth, closed garden, pot in back – baptism, mouse trap by the window – trap the devil so he can’t get in

• Oil painting on panel

Jan Van Eyck, Wedding Portrait of Giovanni Arnolfini and His Wife, 1434, National Gallery, London

• Barefoot – sacred ground• Dog – fidelity• Peaches on window sill represent fertility• Pose represents hoped for fertility• Saint who represents fertility• Mirror greatly detailed• Rim of the mirror tells the story of Jesus• First time a mirror was used in painting• Story of what is going on in the mirror• Can see the people in the doorway in the mirror• Witnesses for marriage• Rosary beads hanging on wall• Note on the wall says “Jan van Eyck was here”• Amazing realism in the reflectiveness in the chandelier• Texture• Implied texture – painting is so realistic it looks like it would feel

the way it looks like the dog or the clothes

Hugo van der Goes, Portinari Altarpiece, c. 1476, Sant’Egidio, now in Uffizi, Florence, Italy

• Painted in Flanders• Very big – over 8ft tall and 20ft across• Triptych• When closed has the annunciation• Painted to look like stone sculpture• Grisaille – painting with shades of gray• Wings• Saints bigger than Portinari family (size indicates

importance)• Adoration of the shepherds• Red symbolizes blood, the blood of Jesus• Wheat can be made into bread, bread symbolizes the

body of Jesus• Faces of the shepherds look realistic• Tempera and oil on wood

Themes of Italian Renaissance Art

• Classicism – the ideas and styles that are common in the literature, art , and architecture of ancient Greece and Rome• Juxtaposition of pagan form with Christian content – using content from pagan art for Christian art, like Nicola Pisano’s

Daniel being based on Hercules or some art having people wearing roman tunics• Re-emergence of the nude – when art started having nudes again, like Nicola Pisano’s Daniel or Donatello’s David• Increasing realism – Subject matter of everyday life; art started becoming more realistic, things started looking more real,

backgrounds, perspective, people• Humanism – A system of thought that centers in humans and their values, capacities, and an emphasis on education and

knowledge and exploration of individual potential• Increased portraiture – More portraits done for wealthy people with the increase of humanism• Rising status of the artist – They were considered to be manual laborers, but eventually were allowed to sign their work

and slowly became more respected• Importance of the Virgin Mary – people were very religious and the virgin Mary is the mother of God, Queen of Heaven,

and Intercessor and people prayed to her and painted her• Perfection of perspective techniques – There used to be flat backgrounds and odd perspective, but they eventually had

backgrounds with atmospheric perspective and had linear perspective• Increased portrayal of Landscape – There used to be flat backgrounds, but eventually there was background showing the

landscape and sky, and more artists did this, and some used it to show man dominating nature

Artists/Architects

• Nicola Pisano• Giotto• Duccio• Brunellsechi• Michelozzo• Alberti• Dontatello• Ghiberti• Gentile da Francesca• Masaccio• Fra Filippo Lippi• Botticelli• Piero della Francesca

Themes of Northern Renaissance Art

• Detail• Realism• Symbolism

Northern Renaissance Artists

• Master of Flemalle• Jan van Eyck• Hugo van der Goes

Biblical Events: Annunciation, Nativity, Adoration of the Magi• Annunciation - Archangel Gabriel tells Mary she will have a baby• Nativity – Jesus is born• Adoration of the Magi – 3 kings visit the baby Jesus and gives gifts

3 Roles of the Virgin Mary

• Mother of God• Queen of Heaven• Intercessor

Architectural Terms and Greek Orders

Parts of Church Architecture

• Narthex – entrance• Nave – center part• Side-aisle – sides of nave• Transept – sides• Apse – top part• Crossing – where the transept and nave meet• Bay – space between columns

Other Terms and Names to Review

• Barrel vault – a vault in the form of a half cylinder.• Clerestory - a portion of an interior rising above adjacent rooftops and having windows admitting

daylight to the interior.• Coffering – square decoration• Façade – outside of a building• Oculus – circular opening (it means eye)• Pilaster – an upright architectural member that is rectangular in plan and is structurally a pier but

architecturally treated as a column and that usually projects a third of its width or less from the wall• Plinth - a block of stone or wood that is used as the base for a pillar, statue, etc.• Rustication – looks unfinished; to give a rustic appearance by roughening the surfaces and beveling the

edges of stone blocks to emphasize the joints between them• Foreshortening – when an object of form is painted perpendicularly to the picture plane to give the

illusion that the object extends into space• Modeling - light and shadow to create folds

Other Terms and Names to Review Continued• Orthogonal - a line imagine to be behind and perpendicular to the picture plane; the orthogonals in a painting

appear to recede toward a vanishing point on the horizon• Transversal - used in perspective drawing. Transversals are imagine lines that run parallel to the picture plane and

perpendicular to the orthogonals; transversals establish a fixed height or width between two orthogonal lines• Atmospheric perspective – forms in distance are less distinct• Linear perspective – a type of perspective used by artists in which the relative size, shape, and position of objects

are determined by drawn or imagined lines converging at a point on the horizon.• One-point perspective - only one vanishing point exists; lines radiate outwardly from this point, and

perpendicular lines meet at this point. Type of linear perspective• Rilievo Schiaciato (Flattened Relief) – forms near viewer are in higher relief, forms in the distance are in lower

relief ( varying levels of relief from high, middle, and low for perspective)• Campanile - a bell tower, especially one freestanding from the body of a church.• Duomo – cathedral• Condottiere – mercenaries• Contrapposto - position in which all weight is put on one leg

Other Terms and Names to Review Continued• Drapery – sculpture with cloth that looks like it acts the way cloth would really behave• Wet drapery – how cloth would behave when wet, used for clothes to have a more fluid

and flowing look, helped to show movement and shape beneath the clothes donned by sculptures

• Fresco – pigments are mixed with water and painted onto freshly laid lime plaster and becomes chemically bound to the plaster as it dries

• Tempera – pigments mixed with egg yolk• Patronage – money and support that is given to an artist, organization, etc.• Pictorial tradition – all art painted in a similar way• Polyptych – panel painting, multiple panels; an altarpiece composed of four or more

sections• Triptych – three pieces; an altarpiece composed of three sections

Other Terms and Names to Review Continued• Predella - the base of an altarpiece, often decorated with small paintings or reliefs.• Quatrefoil – four leaf clover shape• Sarcophagus – a stone coffin, typically adorned with a sculpture or inscription and associated with

the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Rome, and Greece.• Sfumato - the technique of allowing tones and colors to shade gradually into one another,

producing softened outlines or hazy forms.• Stylization - to represent or design according to a style or stylistic pattern rather than according to

nature or tradition• Tondo - a circular painting or relief.• Triumphal arch - a monumental structure pierced by at least one lofty and typically arched

passageway and usually commemorating a notable victory, person, or event• Typology – scene from old testament foreshadows a scene from the new testament• Usury - the illegal action or practice of lending money at unreasonably high rates of interest.

Other Terms and Names to Review Continued• Arnolfini – wealthy, subjects of a painting by Jan van Eyck• Brancacci – wealthy, commissioned Brancacci Chapel designed by Brunelleschi• Calimala Guild - guild of wool merchants in 13th-century Florence• Lana Guild - guild of wool merchants • Colosseum – in Rome• Pantheon – in Rome, for all of the Roman gods and goddesses• Constantine – Roman emperor who converted to Christianity• Federigo da Montefeltro and Battista Sforza - wealthy, from Urbino, subjects of a painting by Piero della

Francesca. Battista was painted from her death mask. Battista was married at 14, had 9 children, 8 girls, 1 boy, died six months after her last child was born

• Gothic – originated in France. Pointed arches. • Marcus Aurelius – Roman emperor, has the only Roman equestrian sculpture to make it to us• Medici – wealthy family in Florence, owned banks, usury, commissioned art, had great thinkers around

them

Other Terms and Names to Review Continued• Merode – family that commissioned the Mérode Altarpiece by the Master of Flemalle• Orsanmichele – a church in Florence, original location of the 14 sculptures of the 14 guilds’ patron saints• Palazzo Vecchio – Town hall in Florence Italy; Can see enemies, put in canons, and be able to pour hot liquid on enemies• Phaedra and Hippolytus - Though married to Theseus, Phaedra fell in love with Hippolytus, Theseus' son born by either

Hippolyta, queen of the Amazons, or Antiope, her sister. Euripides placed this story twice on the Athenian stage, of which one version survives. According to some sources, Hippolytus had spurned Aphrodite to remain a steadfast and virginal devotee of Artemis, and Aphrodite made Phaedra fall in love with him as a punishment.[1] He rejected her.

• In one version, Phaedra's nurse told Hippolytus of her love, and he swore he would not reveal her as a source of information. In revenge, Phaedra wrote Theseus a letter that claimed Hippolytus raped her. Theseus believed her and cursed Hippolytus with one of the three curses he had received from Poseidon.[2] As a result, Hippolytus' horses were frightened by a sea monster and dragged their rider to his death.

• Alternatively, after Phaedra told Theseus that Hippolytus had raped her, Theseus killed his son and Phaedra committed suicide out of guilt for she had not intended Hippolytus to die. Artemis later told Theseus the truth. In a third version, Phaedra simply told Theseus this and did not kill herself; Dionysus sent a wild bull which terrified Hippolytus' horses.

• Pitti – palace bought by the medici family?• Polykleitos – Greek sculptor in bronze made Spear Bearer (Doryphoros), c. 450-440 BCE• Portinari - family from Italy, worked as bankers for the Medici, lived for more than forty years in Bruges, had Hugo van der

Goes paint an altarpiece they brought back to Italy, now in Uffizi

Other Terms and Names to Review Continued• Praxiteles – a greek sculptor, made the first life-size female nude, Aphrodite, c. 350 BCE • Romanesque – resembles Roman art and architecture, massive quality, thick walls, round arches,

sturdy piers, groin vaults, large towers and decorative arcading. • San Lorenzo – church commissioned by the Medici family, designed by Brunelleschi, façade was never

completed, the inside is beautiful• Sant’Andrea – Designed by Alberti, Commissioned by Gonzaga, side chapels instead of side aisles• Santa Trinita - a church in central Florence, Italy. Location of the Strozzi Chapel and original location of

the Strozzi Altarpiece. • Scrovegni – wealthy family that made money from usury, commissioned a church, location of Giotto’s

fresco paintings• Strozzi – wealthy family, rivals with Medici, built the Strozzi Chapel in Santa Trinita, commissioned the

Strozzi Altarpiece by Gentile da Fabriano• Uffizi - an art museum in Italy. It is located in Florence, and among the oldest and most famous art

museums of Europe.