Masaccio 1401 28 Founding father of Renaissance painting

Masaccio (1401 -28) “Founding father” of Renaissance painting; died before reaching the age of 27. The Trinity, c. 1425

Donatello, Feast of Herod, c. 1425 Masaccio, Trinity, c. 1425

Iconography: The study of those aspects of a work of art that pertain exclusively to its subject, and the ways in which that subject is represented. Iconography of the Trinity: • God the Father: elderly bearded man with blue cloak over reddish shirt. • The Son (Jesus Christ): shown semi-nude and crucified on a cross. • The Holy Spirit (Holy Ghost): appears in the form of a dove. Note: The holiness or sanctity of the figures is denoted by a halo, usually a gold disk.

Gothic painting of The Trinity (13 th century) (Same iconography—different style)

The Virgin Mary St. John “the Evangelist” (Note that the haloes are “foreshortened” into elliptical shapes)

Italian painting, c. 1310 (Note variations in the scale of the figures)

Donor portraits in Masaccio’s Trinity (probably members of the Lenzi family)

Masaccio’s Trinity on the wall of a church in Florence

Masaccio’s Trinity: the complete painting

The technique of painting a fresco • Lay a smooth coat of “fresh” plaster to a section of the wall, applying only as much as can be painted in a single session. • Mix powdery pigment with water and paint on the layer of plaster. • As the water evaporates, the pigment sinks into and bonds with the layer of plaster. • The result is a somewhat pale, chalky layer of color that becomes part of the plastered wall. Masaccio’s Trinity: the complete painting

Lower portion of The Trinity, showing a skeleton on a sarcophagus and the inscription “I used to be what you are, and what I am, you too will be. ”

Diagram of The Trinity showing orthogonals and vanishing point

Prof. Zucker standing next to The Trinity. Note that the vanishing point is at eye level.

The Brancacci Chapel, Florence (financed by Felice Brancacci), c. 1425

Left wall of Brancacci Chapel, including The Expulsion from Paradise and The Tribute Money

Expulsion from Paradise Note the use of chiaroscuro, an Italian word meaning “light-dark. ” It refers to contrasts of light and shadow in paintings, especially as used to suggest 3 -dimensional form.

Masaccio, Expulsion View of Brancacci Chapel showing the window that serves as an imaginary source of light for the painting

Masaccio, Expulsion Ancient Roman statue of Venus

Masaccio, The Tribute Money

Diagram of The Tribute Money showing the horizon line, orthogonals, and vanishing point.

Detail of The Tribute Money “Aerial” or “atmospheric” perspective: Shows how vision is affected by distance. Things that are further away appear both paler and hazier because of the greater amount of air or atmosphere through which we view them.

Figures in The Tribute Money (c. 1425) compared with Nanni di Banco’s Quattro Coronati (completed 1416)

Perugino, The Delivery of the Keys, 1482 Fresco in the Sistine Chapel (Rome): named after Pope Sixtus IV, who built the chapel and commissioned the frescoes.

Perugino’s Delivery of the Keys (1482) compared with Masaccio’s Tribute Money (c. 1425)

Detail: Christ giving the keys to St. Peter

The keys symbolize the authority given to Peter, the first pope, to serve as Christ’s representative on earth, as we read in the Bible: “And I say unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever that shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven” (Matthew 16: 18 -19). Detail: Christ giving the keys to St. Peter

Detail: Perugino’s self-portrait

Detail: triumphal arch

Arch of Constantine

Botticelli, Birth of Venus, c. 1485 Probably commissioned by Lorenzo de’ Medici, nicknamed “the Magnificent. ” Lorenzo was the grandson of Cosimo de’ Medici and the unofficial ruler of Florence in the late 15 th century.

Birth of Venus Detail: Wind God and Breeze

Birth of Venus Detail: Nymph of Spring

Birth of Venus Detail: Venus

Masaccio’s Eve Detail: Venus

Detail: Venus

Both works were Medici commissions Donatello, David Detail: Venus