Thursday, October 11, 2012

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 

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