Cimabue Giotto Nicola Pisano Duccio Simone Martini Lorenzettis Artists to Know Cimabue (Florence) Giotto Nicola Pisano Duccio (Siena) Simone Martini Lorenzettis

Late Gothic What you need to know about Late 1200s – Early 1300s Black Death wipes out 25% of Europe Also known as “Proto-Renaissance” Gothic ARCHITECTURE = France Late Gothic PAINTING = Italy Think of Late Gothic Painting as the “Hellenistic Period” of the High Gothic Era – Emotional, Detailed, and a more Humanistic Connection

Byzantine Virgin and Child Late Gothic Virgin and Child Renaissance How does Late Gothic art create the bridge between Byzantine and Renaissance art? Byzantine Virgin and Child Late Gothic Virgin and Child Renaissance Virgin and Child

Nicola Pisano, Pisa Baptistry Pulpit, 1260. LATE GOTHIC Nicola Pisano (circa 1220-c. 1284). Nicola is thought to have been trained in the Italian workshops of the Holy Roman emperor Frederick II, who encouraged a Roman revival. Nicola's carved reliefs for the pulpit of the Pisa Baptistery were derived from figures on Roman sarcophagi in the Camposanto of Pisa. These carvings are outstanding for their assimilation of the solid, three-dimensional Roman style as well as for their corresponding emphasis on the individuality and dignity of the human figure. They mark a turning point in Italian sculpture analogous to that represented in painting by the work of Giotto. Nicola Pisano, Pisa Baptistry Pulpit, 1260. LATE GOTHIC

Nicola Pisano, Siena Baptistry Pulpit, 1260. LATE GOTHIC

A Chapel Built to be Painted Giotto Di Bondone, Interior of the Arena Chapel , 1305-1306 A Chapel Built to be Painted The “Arena Chapel” gets it name from the Roman amphitheater that is nearby and was built for a local Paduan merchant named Enrico Scrovegni. The design of the building so perfectly fits the illusion that its is suggested that Giotto may have been the architect as well. The result of such a large “canvas” on which to paint was a complete pictorial cycle of Christian Redemption, created in 38 framed pictures on 3 levels. The top register contains images of Virgin Mary and her parents, the middle level contains imagery from the life and mission of Christ, and the bottom level depicts Christ’s Passion, Crucifixion, and Resurrection. The pictorial levels are on a neutral base with imitation marble veneer alternates with the virtues and vices painted in grisaille (monochrome grays, often used for modeling in painting) to resemble sculpture.

Exterior of Arena Chapel

In one of the scenes, Enrico Scrovegni offers a model of the Chapel to the Virgin Mary in one of Giotto’s frescoes.

The ANNUNCIATION The VISITATION The ADORATION The DEPOSITION Archangel GABRIEL informs Mary that she will bear the baby Jesus. Dove represents the INCARNATION The VISITATION Mary visits cousin Elizabeth (who’s pregnant w/ St. John the Baptist)… Elizabeth 1st to recognize divinity of baby The ADORATION Three Magi from the East present gifts to honor Jesus as King of the Jews… Gold (kingship), Frankincense (divinity) and Myrrh (Death) The DEPOSITION Jesus’s dead body is being taken down from the cross. The LAMENTATION Mary and other bystanders mourn the body as Jesus Christ lays dead. The RESURRECTION Three days after Christ dies, he walks from his tomb as the guards sleep. The ASCENSION 40 days after his resurrection, Christ ascends into heaven as his apostles (and sometimes the Virgin Mary) watch

The Illusion of Depth & Form Chiaroscuro …the use of dramatic contrasts of dark and light to produce modeling Giotto Di Bondone, Lamentation, ca. 1305 Arena Chapel LATE GOTHIC

Late Gothic Art No more Cookie-Cutter Poses… Giotto Di Bondone, Crucifixion, ca. 1305 Arena Chapel LATE GOTHIC

Giotto Di Bondone, Flight Into Egypt, ca. 1305 Arena Chapel LATE GOTHIC

Giotto Di Bondone, Homage of a Simple Man, ca. 1295-1300. St. Francis of Assisi, Italy

Church of St. Francis of Assisi Assisi, Italy 1228

St. Francis of Assisi Church

Church of St. Francis of Assisi Siena Cathedral

Interior of Upper Chapel

Duccio, “Virgin and Child Enthroned with Saints” Maesta alterpiece, Siena, Italy, 1308-1311 Tempera on wood panel. Part of a large altarpiece called the Maesta, he carved his name into the base of the Virgin’s throne. It depicts the Virgin enthroned as the Queen of Heaven amid angels and saints. The composition’s formality, symmetry, and faces of the figures all come from Byzantine tradition but they are slightly relaxed - the faces on the figures are individualized and there movements are softened. Part of a new naturalism, full of color, composition and texture manipulation. The influence of China and the Middle East can be seen in the texture and composition of the fabrics that the figures are wearing.

Betrayal of Jesus Duccio Di Buoninsegna, detail from the back of the Maesta altarpiece from the Siena Cathedral. Siena, Italy. 1309-1311 This piece is representation of several episodes of Jesus’ betrayal, including the Kiss of Judas, the disciples fleeing in terror, and Peter cutting off the ear of the high priest’s servant. The golden sky remains traditional, however, the figures are not depicted as they were in earlier Byzantine art. Duccio gives the figures depth, emotion on their faces, and adorns them with clothing that drapes around them convincingly. The figures display a variety of emotions, reacting to what is happening around them.

Duccio Di Buoninsegna, detail from the back of the Maesta altarpiece Duccio Di Buoninsegna, detail from the back of the Maesta altarpiece. 1309-1311 LATE GOTHIC

Computer Reconstruction of the Maesta (Front)

Computer Reconstruction of the Maesta (Back)

Duccio, Triptych of Madonna and Child, c1280. LATE GOTHIC

The Stoclet Madonna In November 2004 the painting was purchased by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City (Met) for an undisclosed sum, reported to be in excess of 45 million USD, the most expensive purchase ever by the museum. It was the first work by Duccio acquired by the Met, which bought the painting from members of the Stoclet family in order to close a gap in its permanent collections of painting. Duccio, The Stoclet Madonna, c1300, Tempera on Wood. 8.3” x 11”. LATE GOTHIC

Monumental Figures Giotto Di Bondone, Madonna Enthroned, ca. 1310. LATE GOTHIC Monumental Figures Giotto’s new form of painting displaced the Byzantine style and established painting as a major art form for the next six centuries. He is often credited as the father of Western pictorial art. He restored the naturalistic approach invented by the Romans, that was abandoned in the middle ages, and established a method of pictorial expression based on observation that might be called “early scientific”. Madonna is depicted in representational art with sculptural solidity and weight. Madonna, enthroned with angles, rests within her Gothic throne with the unshakable stability of an ancient marble goddess. His technique for such an aesthetic is called chiaroscuro. This art was aimed to construct a figure that had substance, dimensionality, and bulk. Works painted in this new style portray figures, like those in sculpture, that project into the light and give the illusion that they could cast shadows. In this painting the throne is deep enough to contain the monumental figure and breaks away from the flat ground to project and enclose her.

Ambrogio Lorenzetti Sala dei Nove, 1338-1339, Siena Italy

Visualizing Good Government Ambrogio Lorenzetti Peaceful City, 1338-1339, Siena Italy Visualizing Good Government Lorenzetti was called upon to paint allegorical depictions of good and bad government and to represent the effects such regimes would have in the town and the country. The result is the first panoramic city/countryscape since antiquity, and the first expansive portrait that we have of an actual city and landscape. Today, the cycle is usually identified as Good and Bad Government. Ambrogio chose the best-illuminated walls for Good Government and its effects, leaving Bad Government in the shadows on a wall that has also suffered considerable damage.  

Visualizing Bad Government Ambrogio Lorenzetti Effects of Bad Government, 1338-1339, Siena Italy Visualizing Bad Government

Cimabue Florentine painter whose nickname means ‘Ox-Head’ Cenni di Pepi (Cimabue) Crucifix, 1287-88. LATE GOTHIC Cimabue Florentine painter whose nickname means ‘Ox-Head’ Was considered one of the last of the ‘Greek Manner’ (aka BYZANTINE) style painters, and one of the 1st to begin exploring natural features of the body thru painting Regarded as one of the best painters of the time, only to be overshadowed by his student Giotto

Cimabue, The Madonna and Child in Majesty Surrounded by Angels, c1280 Cimabue, The Madonna and Child in Majesty Surrounded by Angels, c1280. LATE GOTHIC

Cimabue Cenni di Pepi (Cimabue) Florentine painter whose nickname means ‘Ox-Head’ Was considered one of the last of the ‘Greek Manner’ (aka BYZANTINE) style painters, and one of the 1st to begin exploring natural features of the body thru painting Regarded as one of the best painters of the time, only to be overshadowed by his student Giotto Cenni di Pepi (Cimabue) Madonna and Child Enthroned (1280) Tempera and Gold on Wood, Florence. LATE GOTHIC

Cimabue Giotto

CIMABUE versus GIOTTO In Purgatorio 11, while commenting on the fleeting nature of artistic reputation, Dante notes that: "Cimabue once thought that he held the field in painting, and now Giotto has the praise, so much so that the other's fame is obscured." Why did Giotto so quickly surpass his teacher? Art historians have noted that while Cimabue began to break away from the Byzantine style of painting that had dominated Europe since the beginning of the Middle Ages, Giotto's innovations were much more radical and systematic. Giotto's use of perspective and his portrayal of figures as individuals, each with a distinctive personality, resulted in a realism that would have appealed to the fourteenth-century Florentine middle class."

Giotto Cimabue Unlike most Byzantine art, both of the two paintings above use perspective (a hallmark of Renaissance art) to represent three-dimensional space. The throne in Cimabue's painting sits on a curved platform. In Giotto's painting, on the other hand, the three dimensional throne above the Madonna's head not only adds depth but also projects the figure toward the viewer. Giotto's Mary is also more firmly anchored to the ground, while Cimabue's Mary seems almost to float in space.

Giotto Cimabue In the first painting, Mary, Jesus, and the angels are painted without much attention to individual physiognomy or expression. Each of the angels on the left has an almost identical counterpart on the right. The four apostles depicted at the bottom of the painting are much more individualized in their features and poses. In Giotto's painting, Mary, Jesus, and the angels are all different from each other. The angels are still symmetrically arranged, but each angel on the left is subtly different in expression from its counterpart on the right. The Holy Mother is holding her Son in a much more realistic position.

Creating an “International Style” Martini’s own style did not quite reach the full exuberance of the developed International Style, A style of 14th- and 15th-century painting begun by Simone Martini, who adapted the French Gothic manner to Sienese art fused with influences from the North. This style appealed to the aristocracy because of its brilliant color, lavish costume, intricate ornament, and themes involving splendid processions of knights and ladies. Elegant shapes and radiant color: flowing, fluttering line; and weightless figures in a spaceless setting characterize the Annuciation. Simone Martini, Annunciation, 1333 LATE GOTHIC (International Gothic)

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Duccio, “Virgin and Child Enthroned with Saints” Principle panel of the Maesta alterpiece, from the Siena Cathedra, Siena, Italy, 1308-1311 Tempra on wood panel LATE GOTHIC / PROTO-RENAISSANCE

Ambrogio Lorenzetti Peaceful City, 1338-1339. LATE GOTHIC

Simone Martini, Annunciation, 1333. LATE GOTHIC

Giotto Madonna Enthroned ca. 1310. LATE GOTHIC / PROTO-RENAISSANCE

LATE GOTHIC / PROTO-RENAISSANCE Giotto Interior of the Arena Chapel , 1305-1306 Padua, Italy LATE GOTHIC / PROTO-RENAISSANCE

Duccio, The Arrest of Jesus, (detail from back of the Maesta altarpiece). Siena, Italy. 1309-1311 LATE GOTHIC / PROTO-RENAISSANCE

Nicola Pisano Baptistry Pulpit, ca. 1260 LATE GOTHIC / PROTO-RENAISSANCE

Cimabue 1280 LATE GOTHIC / PROTO-RENAISSANCE Madonna and Child Enthroned Tempera and Gold on Wood 1280 LATE GOTHIC / PROTO-RENAISSANCE

Giotto Lamentation, ca. 1305 Arena Chapel, Padua, Italy LATE GOTHIC / PROTO-RENAISSANCE