Madonna and Child with St. Nicholas, St. John the Evangelist, St. Peter and St. Benedict (Badia Polyptych) c.1300, GALLERIA DEGLI UFFIZI, FLORENCE, ITALY
Joachim Taking Refuge among the Shepherds 1304–6, CAPELLA DEGLI SCROVEGNI, PADUA, ITALY
Madonna and Child Enthroned with Saints (Ognissanti Madonna) c.1305–10, GALLERIA DEGLI UFFIZI, FLORENCE, ITALY
Stigmatization 1319–28, BARDI CHAPEL, CHURCH OF SANTA CROCE, FLORENCE, ITALY
DONATELLO
c.1386–1466 • EARLY RENAISSANCE
David
1408 BRONZE
HEIGHT 157.5 CM (62 IN)
BARGELLO, FLORENCE, ITALY
This was the first life-sized nude statue since classical times and provides a link between ancient and modern. In the Bible story, David, who is destined to become the second king of Israel, kills the giant Goliath. Donatello’s statue symbolized the conflict between Milan (Goliath) and Florence (David).
The son of a Florentine wool comber, Donato di Niccolò di Betto Bardi established a new, humanistic style of sculpture that moved away from accepted Gothic representations of the human form.
The first sculptor since classical times to develop a broad knowledge of ancient Greek and Roman sculpture, Donatello combined classical lines with realism. Born in Florence, he received his early artistic training with a goldsmith and then worked briefly in the studio of Lorenzo Ghiberti, where he assisted with the creation of the bronze doors of Florence’s Baptistry. From 1404, he spent three years in Rome with the architect and sculptor Filippo Brunelleschi, excavating and studying ancient Roman artifacts.
Donatello was inspired by the naturalism he saw in these great works of antiquity—and by the humanist movement that had started in Florence—and began creating statues that appeared to have a life of their own and individual personalities. This was a radical departure from the decorative Gothic style that he had been trained in.
He became accomplished in working with marble, bronze, wood, terracotta and stucco and developed his own style of basso relievo, or low relief, which became known as schiacciato (“flattened out”). This technique involved extremely shallow carving to create dramatic images that reflected light and shadow. No-one had created such images before and the naturalism and range of emotions Donatello portrayed in his work had a huge impact on both his contemporaries and the generations of artists that followed. Diverse, diligent, resourceful and original, he was more interested in depicting emotions than in the finish of his sculptures and reliefs. A prolific worker, he soon became so famous and in such demand that he had to turn down many commissions across northern Italy.
Key Works
St. John 1408–15, MUSEO DELL’OPERA DEL DUOMO, FLORENCE, ITALY
Statue of Habacuc (also known as Zuccone) 1411–13, MUSEO DELL’OPERA DEL DUOMO, FLORENCE, ITALY
Feast of Herod c.1425, BAPTISTRY, SIENA, ITALY
Equestrian monument of Gattamelata 1444–53, PIAZZA DEL SANTO, PADUA, ITALY
The Penitent Magdalene c.1453–5, MUSEO DELL’OPERA DEL DUOMO, FLORENCE, ITALY
FRA ANGELICO
c.1387–1455 • RENAISSANCE
The Annunciation
1433–4 TEMPERA ON WOOD
175 × 180 CM (68 × 70 IN)
MUSEO DIOCESANO, CORTONA, ITALY
Created for the main altar of the church of San Domenico in Cortona, this was designed to promote contemplation and the new humanist ideas that were developing in northern Italy. Drawn with careful precision, it shows an understanding of depth and space.
This Dominican friar began as a manuscript illuminator. Later he became known as the “Blessed Angelico,” as both his gentle personality and his art were held in the highest esteem.
Born in the countryside northeast of Florence, Guido di Pietro joined the Dominican monastic order with his brother Benedetto. Taking the name Fra Giovanni, he became the preeminent painter of altarpieces and other religious works in Tuscany for nearly 30 years. Because of his quiet piety and his delicate paintings, he was nicknamed “pictor angelicus” or “Angelic Painter,” which after his death was translated into Fra Angelico.
At first, he and his brother decorated manuscripts, but they soon moved on to paint frescoes on the monastery walls. Most of the frescoes were in the friars’ cells and designed to encourage meditation, so they were delicately colored, economical in line and serenely composed. As he was not part of a closed order, Fra Angelico could meet and talk to others and he was soon promoted to managing a busy workshop. He became prominent among a new generation of Florentine artists, including Fra Filippo Lippi (1406–69) and Andrea del Castagno (c.1418–57).
In 1436, Fra Angelico’s order took over the convent of San Marco in Florence and he was commissioned to decorate the friars’ cells there. With the help of his brother and other assistants, he painted approximately 50 frescoes on the walls of the cloister, the cells, the common rooms and the corridors. Rather than factually document biblical stories, the paintings encouraged a feeling of spirituality that was intended to stimulate prayer. In later life, Fra Angelico traveled widely for prestigious commissions—he worked in Orvieto, Perugia and Rome, where he decorated the private chapel of Pope Nicholas V in the Vatican.
Key Works
Eighteen Blessed of the Dominican Order c.1420–4, NATIONAL GALLERY, LONDON, UK
The Nativity c.1429–30, PINACOTECA CIVICA, FORLÌ, ITALY
Annunciation c.1432–4, MUSEO DIOCESANO, CORTONA, ITALY
The Virgin of Humility c.1436–8, RIJKSMUSEUM, AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS
The Adoration of the Magi c.1435–40, NATIONAL GALLERY, LONDON, UK
VAN EYCK
c.1390–1441 • NORTHERN RENAISSANCE
The Arnolfini Portrait
1434 OIL ON WOOD
81.8 × 59.7 CM (32¼ × 23½ IN)
NATIONAL GALLERY, LONDON, UK
Although not a wedding portrait as was once thought, this portrait of Giovanni and Giovanna Arnolfini in a richly furnished room is replete with symbolism. Fidelity, fertility and work-related success are all suggested. A mirror ornamented with scenes from the Passion of Christ reflects two figures. Above it an inscription reads “Jan van Eyck was here 1434.”
During the 14th century, the Belgian city of Bruges became one of the chief artistic centers of Europe, full of wealthy merchants who commissioned paintings to celebrate their achievements. Like Fra Angelico in Italy, it is likely that Jan van Eyck trained as a manuscript illuminator, but soon came to prominence as a painter.
Jan van Eyck was probably born near Maastricht in the Netherlands. He was one of the first Flemish artists to sign his work and his rich and detailed images reflect the prosperity of the cities of northern Europe, such as Ghent and Bruges. First documented as working in The Hague for the Count of Holland in about 1422, he was next at Bruges and Lille as court painter to Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy in 1425. Three years later, he received a prestigious commission to paint Philip’s future wife, Isabella of Portugal. After his return from Portugal, he bought a house in Bruges and remained in Philip’s employment for the rest of his life.