Tintoretto's Last Supper

Jacopo Comin, also known as Tintoretto, was an Italian painter. His works are characterized by his muscular figures and dramatic gestures. He loved all the arts and played various instruments, some of them of his own invention, and designed theatrical costumes and properties.

Tintoretto is most famous for his painting of The Last Supper , which can be found in the Basilica di San Giorgio Maggiore in Venice. The Last Super is about the secondary characters instead of the apostles in the center of the artwork. For instance, the woman carrying a dish or the servants cleaning the table. Tintoretto's, painting involves an imbalanced composition. He creates a dramatic scene to educate viewers about the Counter- Reformation and the Catholic Church's beliefs.

Consequently, he created a light, which comes into obscurity from both the light on the ceiling and from Jesus' auora. That little bit of light is what makes this one of my favorite paintings. I love that fact that Tintoretto wanted to focus on the secondary characters compared to the apostles. Many artist of the Renaissance/ Baroque time only focused on the apostles and didn’t ever think about the others. This picture has a lot of spiritual meaning and can really educate viewers from its obvious description. 

The Last Supper by Jacopo Tintoretto (1590- 1594) 

The Importance of Michelangelo's Name

We are all very familiar with Michelangelo, especially the PCC study abroad students in Florence, and most of his majestic masterpieces.  Georgio Vasari quotes, “Michelangelo acquired so much skill in his study of art that it was incredible to see his lofty concepts and difficult style, which he put into practice with such great facility that it terrified people unaccustomed to seeing such works as well as those accostumed to good ones, for the works that others were showing seemed nothing in comparison with his. “ (pg. 424) While Michelangelo’s sculpting techniques are the rarist of his time you can witness his artwork in the Saint Peter’s in the Chapel of the Madonna della Febbre, in the temple of Mars. This figure of the dead Christ stands out because its unimaginable beauty of it limbs and the way the body is carved. A nude man endowed with muscels, veins, and nerves stretched over the framework of the bones. In addition, the expression on the face is so very gentle, and there is such harmony in the joints and the articulations of the arms, torso, and legs. “Michelangelo placed so much love and labour in this work that on it he left his name written across a sash which grids Our Lady’s breast.” (pg. 425) This happened because one day he went into the church where the statue was placed and he saw a large amount of foreigners from Lombardy who were praising his statue. As he saw the foreigners praising his statue he realized that he himself was not receiving praise, but they were praising :Our Gobbo from Milian” instead. So, one night he snuck into the church and brought his carving kit and carved his name into the statue.   

The Delivery of the Keys

Renaissance artist Pietro Vannucci, also known as Perugia was the chief city of Umbria. Vannucci was one of the richest men in the town. He began to study painting in Perugia, in local workshop. According to Vasari, he worked alongside Leonardo Da Vinci and many others. Perugino was one of the earliest Italian successful artists of oil painting. Some of his early works were frescoes that usually  featured different cartoons.

My favorite piece of Perugino is The Delivery of the Keys. This fresco is found in the Sistine Chapel in Rome. While we visited the Sistine Chapel I was blown away by Pietro’s work. The series of the Stories of Jesus is a reference to Matthew 16, which shows the "keys of the kingdom of heaven" are being given to St. Peter. While I was doing further research on this piece I found out that the keys represent power and forgiveness by God. Which leads to giving that power and that forgiveness to others in the heavens. Christ hands the keys to St. Peter, who is surrounded by the other Apostles. Throughout the middle are two scenes from the life of Christ, which are the Tribute Money and the Stoning of Christ. The people featured in this piece of work are very graceful and elegant, consequently, their features are delicate with much detail. 

Perugino, 1450-1523.
The Delivery of the Keys, 1482.
Sistine Chapel, Rome.

The Kinnaired Resurrection

When it comes to artist Raphael, Vasari quotes, “This exceptional painter studied the old works of Masaccio in the city of Florence, while the things he saw in the works of Leonardo and Michelangelo made him apply himself with great intensity to his studies, and, as a result, make extraordinary improvements in his art and style.” (page 311) The Resurrection of Christ also called The Kinnaird Resurrection is an oil painting by Raphael. The painting can now be found in the Sao Paulo Museum of Art.  The Kinnaird Resurrection is one of the first works of Raphael. Nonetheless, while looking at it you see a poetic yet dramatic style. The composition combines all different elements of the scene. The painting shows Raphael's knowledge of the Florentine artistic scene. “In composing this painting, Raphael imagined the pain felt by the closet and dearest relatives.” (page 311)

The Kinnaird Resurrection

by: Raphael

The Beauty Within The Sistine Chapel

Pope Julius requested that Michelangelo paint the chapel ceiling. Julius wanted Rome to be rebuilt to its former glory. The ceiling is about 40 meters long and 13 meters wide, Michelangelo painted over 5,000 sq. feet of frescoes. The center of the ceiling shows scenes from the Book of Genesis. Adjacent to those scenes are endless portraits of prophets. My favorite part of the ceilings was not only the vibrant colors but the hidden stories of Jesus and all the ancient tragedy in Israel. I ‘m fascinated that there are more than 300 painted figures on the ceiling. It took Michelangelo over four years to finish this masterpiece. However, it wasn't Michelangelo's fault that the ceiling took four years. This masterpiece suffered many setbacks, such as, mold and damp weather. Nonetheless, a fun fact I learned while touring the Sistine Chapel was that Michelangelo did not lay on his back to paint the ceiling. He would bend backwards and paint over his head. This technique later led to neck and back ache, which would also permanently screw up his vision.

 

Sistine Chapel, Roma

The Concert Champetre

Titian’s famous piece of work Rape of Europa is presented as “the greatest Renaissance painting in the United States”. Titian was born around 1488 into a family of modest means living in the north of Venice, and studied with Giovanni Bellini, Venice's most prominent artist. Titian and Giorgione shared a workspace, so that their similarity of style in Titian's early career is hardly shocking.  It has led to confusion about the attribution of several Renaissance paintings, most significantly The Concert Champetre, or Pastoral Concert.

Titian’s painting The Concert Champetre Titian portrays three young people in a garden playing, while a woman is pouring water from a basin. Both the women are naked and the two men are dressed in costumes. Personally, I think this piece is very poetic. The two women in the painting represent the ideal beauty and shows the two men's fantasy. The two men playing with the lute represent lyrical poetry. The painting is a four element work of art representing water, fire, earth and air.

The Concert Champetre by Titian 

Salome

In Giorgio Vasari: The Lives of the Artists Vasari explains the achievements of Titian. As stated in Giorgio Vasari, “Titian was born in Cadore, a small town on the River Piave, five miles from the pass through the Alps, to the Vecelli family, one of the noblest in those parts, and when, at the age of ten, he showed fine wit and a lively mind, he was sent to Venice to the home of an uncle of his, a respected citizen, who saw that the boy had a real propensity for the art of painting and who placed him with Giovanni Bellini, a skillful and very famous painter of those times.” (Page 489). It was very fortunate that Titian’s uncle noticed Titians talent, which led him to his fine work we see today.

Titian oil painting Salome was presented in 1515 and now is placed in the Doria Pamphilj Gallery in Rome. While observing this painting it is set in a dark room with an arch opened and shows the blue sky, which is sculpted angel. Salome is holding the head of Saint John the Baptist and is assisted with a woman helper.  The woman was shown in many of Titian’s pieces including; Woman at the Mirror and Violante. Vasari admits, “Although a large number of artisans studied with titian, not many of them can truly be called his followers, for he did not teach much, but each one of them learned more or less, according to what they knew how to take from the works Titian executed…” (Page 508).

Salome (Judith) by Titian

Who is David?

When it comes to art sculpting no matter who you are you’ve heard the name Michelangelo. Michelangelo was and still is one of the most powerful men in the artistry world, and he’s sculpture of David explains why. The statue represents the hero David in the Bible. Vasari quotes on page 428, “the Marforio in Rome, nor the Tiber and the Nile of the Belvedere, nor the colossal statues of Monte Cavallo can be compared to this David, which Michelangelo completed with so much measure and beauty, and so much skill.” Originally, the statue was suppose to be placed along the roofline of the Florence Cathedral, but instead was placed outside the Palazzo della Signoria. It was re-veiled on September 8^th, 1504. It was deeply cherished by Florentines and the eyes of David, with a warning glare, was turned towards Rome in order to protect Florence. Nevetheless, today you can find David at the Accademia Museum.

The warning eyes of David, in order to protect Florence.

by Michelangelo

"Da Vinci"

Leonardo was born April 15, 1452 in the Tuscany town Vinci, by the Arno River. Leonardo and his family weren’t rich people and Leonardo’s name “da Vinci” simply means “of Vinci.” After studying some of Leonardo da Vinci’s work I really liked his first known piece named “Arno River,” and it can now be found in the Uffizi. I found this piece of artwork interesting because he was so young when he finished it. Although this was his first piece noticed it had a special meaning, and it was as if Leonardo wasn’t trying to be creative. It came naturally to him. The story behind this painting was that two Florentine men collaborated on a project to re-altar the Arno River. Consequently, Leonardo da Vinci had heard about the two Florentines and decided to make his own map. He used different canals and locks, and to change the course of the Arno River. It would help divert the river and would provide Florence with an outlet to the sea, by passing the military base in Pisa. In addition, it would help limit the damage of the surrounding farmlands from flooding. This map later showed his interest in hydrodynamics and its harbinger of his late Arno and Romarantin projects.

Leonardo da Vinci "Arno Valley" (1473)

Vasari's Fra Angelico

It’s rare to find a person who believes so strongly in saints and follows Him everywhere. That is not the case for Fra Giovanni. Giovanni was a good man, who worked hard and had certain religious guidelines for his work. He was born near Fiesole in the 14th century and was baptized. An important detail stated in Vasari’s book, “He shunned all the things of the world; living a pure and saintly life, he befriended the poor just as his soul is, I believe, now befriended by Heaven. He applied himself continuously to his painting and never wanted to work on anything but holy subjects. He could have been rich but cared little about wealth; on the contrary, he used to say that true wealth was nothing but being content with little.” (Page 176)

Fra Angelico painted many frescos and was able to express his deep love for God. Fra Angelico to created a large Crucifixion scene with all different sorts of saints for the Chapter House. Nonetheless, Fra Angelico showed an understanding of linear perspective in his Annunciation paintings.  

"Annunciation" by Fra Angelico 

This fresco is in a corridor of the San Marco convent in Florence. Which led Fra Angelico to spending most of his life in the San Marco convent. This fresco shows Mary and the angel greeting one another and in the background Fra Angelico painted a Tuscan cypresses.

The Beautiful Brancacci Chapel

Brancacci Chapel in Florence, Italy

This week one artist we finished discussing was Masaccio and we actually had the opportunity to visit Brancacci Chapel, which has ”The Tribute Money” a fresco done by Masaccio. This artwork features the story of Peter, Virgin Mary, Jesus, Botticelli and many more. My favorite fresco in the chapel was the Baptism of the Neophytes. I loved this fresco because it shows the purity and helplessness in a human being, and that the people truly trusted Peter. Considering, I was baptized it reminded me the amount of hope and trust you can put into someone.

"Baptism of Neophytes" fresco by Masaccio

I also admired the Expulsion from the Garden of Eden. This fresco shows emotional realism and its vivid colors and energy creates a dramatic image of Adam and Eve. Nonetheless, the pose of Eve is based on the Venus Pudica pose that constructed the nude Aphrodite figures in the Late Classical period. While doing further research on this piece I found out that three centuries after the fresco was painted Cosimo III de' Medici ordered that fig leaves be added to conceal the genitals of both Adam and Eve. In addition, the fig leafs were removed in the 1980s when the painting was fully restored and cleaned.

"Expulsion of the Garden of Eden" fresco by Masaccio 

Leon Battista Alberti

As stated in Vasari, “Leon Battista never produced any great or unusually beautiful works, since those that can be still seen are less than perfect; nor is this surprising since he spent more time on his studies than on the art of design.” (page 183)  Leon Battista Alberti was a very studious man he studied at the famous school of Gasparino Barzizza in Padua and finished his academics at the University of Bologna. Battista created amazing architecture, but never stepped outside the box. His work and imagination was very simple and predictable. He is very famous for his architecture at the façade of Palazzo Rucellai and the façade of Santa Maria Novella. For instance, Palazzo Rucellai is a landmark Renaissance palace in Florence. Palazzo Rucellai is considered the spirit of the fifteenth century Humanism of residential architecture. The palace was an attachment of eight smaller buildings. It has been home to the Rucellai family for over 500 years. Nonetheless, Vasari also states “Nevertheless he could demonstrate his ideas quite well with his drawings as can be seen in some sheets in his hands included in our book” (Page 183). I personally, think Leon Battista Alberti was very book smart. Reviewing his personal history and different projects I feel he wasn’t imaginative. 

 Palazzo Rucellai 

The Genius Behind The Beauty

Filippo Brunelleschi was a genius, and I think every person in Florence would agree. He is one of the most famous artists in Italy. Brunelleschi was the mastermind behind the most beautiful piece of architecture in Florence, The Duomo. Which, may also be known as Santa Maria del Fiore. The beautiful dome is located in Piazza del Duomo. The project began in 1296 in the Gothic style and in 1436 it was engineered by Filippo Brunelleschi. The outside of the dome has marble panels in different shades of green and pink with white border. Its most extreme asset is the size of the dome and the massive shell of concrete on the top. Since I’ve moved to Florence I have made it a priority to walk to the Duomo at least once a day. Nonetheless, no matter how many times a walk past The Duomo I will never fully accept its architecture because I will never get over is beauty. 

The Duomo in Firenze, Italy

My favorite view of The Duomo

Donatello's David

For choosing my artist for this blog I was fascinated about Donatello. Not only because he was so talented, but because of the way Vasari praised him so much. It was very obvious from the start that Vasari truly admired Donatello. As quoted by Vasari, “devoting himself to the art of design, he became not only an unusually fine sculptor and a marvelous statue- maker, but also grew experienced in stucco, quite skilled in perspective, and highly esteemed in architecture. His works possessed so much grace and excellence and such a fine sense of design hat they were considered to be more like the distinguished works of the ancient Greeks and Romans han those of any other artist who has ever existed, and he is therefore quite rightly recognized as the first artisan who properly used the device of scenes in bas- relief. He worked out these scenes with such careful thought, true facility, and expert skill that it was obvious he possessed a true understanding of them and executed them with extraordinary beauty. Thus, no other artisan surpassed him in this field, and even in our own times, there is no one who is his equal.” Donatello is known for his impeccable statues. Donatello carved a statue of David in 1408. This statue was Donatello’s first noticed work, and it proved that he would be very successful in the near future. When looking at the statue and David’s stance I thought it showed a little cockiness and as if David new he was important. While observing his blank facial expression I saw some sort curiosity. Considering, those emotions are complete opposite it makes the sculpture even more interesting.

Donatello's David sculpture

The Pulpit

While visiting Sienna this past Friday I got to enjoy the Santa Maria Cathedral. In the cathedral I was mind blown by the sculpture built by Nicola Pisano Pulpit. This sculpture was carved between 1265- 1268 and it represents the Christian doctrine of Salvation and the final destiny of humanity. It consists of nine beautifully sculpted columns with a staircase, which was built later in 1543 by Bartolomeo Neroni. The Pulpit has three levels and each with different symbolic meaning. At the bottom of each column are lions, and looks as if they are trying to protect what is in the middle, which has the Seven Liberal Arts and Philosphy. On the top of the Pulpit are small statues of Christian Virtue and Evangelists and Prophets. This statue also has carvings of the Last Judgement and Madonna with Child. The first panel is about Magi and their journey, the second panel is the candor of presentation removing the sadness from the flight of Egypt, third panel shows the conflict between the desperate mothers and soliders in Slaughter of the Innocents, the fourth panel shows the love of Christ and how he was thought of by the people, and the fifth panel shows the life of Christ and his crucifixion surrounded by mourning individuals and the hateful people who killed him. My favorite panel is the third panel Slaughter of the Innocents because of the reality in the scene. It shows the heartache and it makes you see how truly hard life was during that time. 

 "Pulpit" by Niccola Pisano, Santa Maria Cathedreal in Siena

 

The third panel on he "Pulpit" which represents the Slaughter of Innocents.

The Heavenly Stars Now Belong To Cimabue

According to Vasari, Cimabue inspired the art of painting. While growing up he was judged by his strict father and was sent to Santa Maria Novella for school. Consequently, Cimabue never paid any attention to grammar school he became inspired by nature and spent days drawing men, animals and architecture. Fortunetly, Cimabue came from a rich family so he wasn’t summoned as a Greek artist in Florence. He took over many projects in Firenze. He also started to work on his masterpiece on The Gondi Chapel, which you can find in the Santa Maria Novella.

Cimabue’s work imitated many Greek styles of painting. Nevertheless, he had very much improved their style of painting and took away a lot of their awkwardness. Cimabue did honor his native city with his name. He created the Altar Dossal at Santa Cecilia and then a panel of our lady in Santa Croce.

After, undertaking a large panel for the monks of Vallombrosa in the Abbey of Santa Trinita in Florence. He worked hard and laborious to perfect the frame including a beautiful pose of the Madonna whom He depicted holding Her son in His arms, while angels surrounded Her in adoration. When his work was completed it the monks placed it on a high altar of their church.

Although Cimabue had much success he always stuck to his roots through greek manner. He was much softer when it came to his lines and style of modern times. Vasari was very compassionate about Cimabue and quoted in his book, “ Cimabue believed he held the field in painting, and while alive he did; but now the heavenly stars are his.”( Pg 12 Vasari).

Cimabue: Maesta

Cimabue aka Bencivieni di Pepo was a famous artist in Florence. He was born in Firenze, Italy and died in Pisa, Italy. Cimabue is one of the first well- known Italian painters to escape from the Byzantine style. Consequently, this led to Vasari assumption of Cimabue teaching another painter known as Giotto. 

Cimabue first famous painting was the Crucifixion in San Domenico Church, in Arezzo. Once he gained more knowledge of works such as the Christus patiens by Giunta Pisano he left behind the Byzantine style.

Around year 1272 he made another Crucifixion for the Santa Croce church in Firenze, Italy. This time it was much bigger and couldn’t compare to his previous work in Arezzo. In addition, that year he painted the Maesta with Saints Francis and Dominic now at the Uffizi.

Maestà is the Italian word for "majesty". Cimabue’s painting representing the Madonna and her child baby Jesus uniting with angels and saints.  The Maesta came widespread in Rome during the late 12^th and early 13^th centuries. Which created a massive amount of attention on the veneration of Mary. The Maesta was inspired through frescos and put directly on plastered walls, as for paintings often they could be found on wooden altar panels. 

Rebirth and Giorgio Vasari

Giorgio Vasari first started to study with the Medici brothers, Ippolito and Alessandro. Whom was assassinated later in 1537, which led Vasari to becoming good friends with Rosso Fiorentino and  Francesco Salviati. Eventually, Vasari finished his first edition of Lives in 1550.  Vasari’s major architectural projects included the construction of the Arno River linking the government offices of the Uffizi and Grand Dukes residence in the Palazzo Pitti. The few books he began to write didn’t have real referneces. Nonetheless, Giorgio Vasari practically invented the structure of art history. Vasari’s followed three stages, the first marking “rebirth” to the art of classical civilization and innovatived stylistic discoveries of Cimabue and Giotto. The second stage had a much more sophisticated design and perspective. This stage increased artistic skill and involved rules to paintings, sculpture, and architecture. This intermediate step was used by artists, such as: of Ghiberti, Brunelleschi, Donatello, and Masaccio The final stage was used by artists Leonardo, Raphael, and Michelangelo. Vasari’s documented and argued so persuasively that it’s remained a dominant view in Italian renaissance art ever since.

Giorgio Vasari

Who is Sandro Botticelli?

Although our course has just started I can tell that I will gain much more knowledge about Italy from this course more than the others. When it comes to reading our textbook Gardner’s Art Through the Ages: Renaissance and Baroque I like that it goes over every detail of art history and explains the little details on art, sculpture and architecture. The artist I was really drawn to while visiting the Uffizi Museum was Sandro Botticelli.

Botticelli was known for his paintings and how he treated them as a series of legendary topics including The Birth of Venus and Mars & Venus. These painting represented the Roman gods and the Renaissance classical roots. While walking through the Uffizi museum I noticed his beautiful painting for Santa Maria Novella, Adoration of the Magi. Botticelli is also known for the portraits of Cosimo de Medici, involving his sons Piero and Giovanni, in addition his grandsons Lorenzo and Giuliano.

Sandro’s masterpieces Primavera and The Birth of Venus were both seen by Vasari at the villa of Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de' Medici at Castello. Vasari addressed Botticelli’s artwork with great praise. It’s said that the Primavera and The Birth of Venus were painted for Lorenzo's townhouse in Florence. 

Primavera by: Sandro Botticelli

 The Birth of Venus by: Sandro Botticelli

Experiencing The Life Of Italy

This abroad program is has the first art history course I've ever done. I’m interested in learning about this subject that is so foreign to me. I hope this trip teaches me the history of architecture and certain European sculpture. I am most interested in learning different stories of the Italian gods. So far, I’ve learned a little about the Duomo and Santa Croce. While reading Gardener’s Art through the Ages I read that most viewers try to relate to the different sculptures, artwork, and architecture. Then judge the different arts by its success or failure. I hope to be able to look at all different works and find how I may relate to the certain objects. It also states that most artists were inspired to create sculptures, paintings, and other objects by other patrons. Nevertheless, many objects were made to be presents. Consequently, many artists today have been influenced and let out their emotions through other art, such as, dance and fashion. In conclusion I hope to make this experience unforgettable and meet people that I’ll always remember.

 

PCC Study Abroad students suffering for 6 hours because of Lufthansa strike.

 

The Duomo in Firenze, Italy

Giorgio Vasari: The Mastermind

Vasari was born in Arezzo on July 30, 1511 and moved to Florence, Italy in 1524 to study under Michael Angelo. When Michael Angelo left Florence he started the workshops of Andrea del Sarto and Baccio Bandinelli, and then eventually studied with Ippolito. While growing up his father Antonio Vasari persuaded him to draw. Sadly, in 1527 his father died from the plague in Arezzo. On February 24, 1530 Vasari witnessed the coronation of Emporer Charles V by Pope Clement VII in Bologna. Vasari and the Pope became good friends after this.

Vasari moved around Italy many times due to his work. For instance, around January of 1537 Vasari moved back to Arezzo and just a year later Vasari returned to Rome. This led to him receiving his Golden Spur after working on the Vatican. Consequently, in 1541 Vasari traveled back to Venice, Italy by invitation of Pietro Aretino. He was then introduced to the work of Giulio Romano.

Soon enough, Vasari begins his masterpiece on the Cupola of Florence’s Duomo in 1572 and unveils the large frescos walls of the Palazzo Vecchio. Nonetheless, two years later in 1574 Vasari died while still working on the Duomo. 

FLORENCE, ITALY