Chapter 19
Italy, 1200-1400
(Italian Gothic---TRECENTO art---1300’s)
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picks up some qualities of Northern Gothic, but keeps classical Italian emphasis---in
architecture: broader nave, only two interior bands (nave arcade and clerestory),
flattened façade, less pointed arches and windows; more balanced and rational
guilds are important networks where art becomes a regulated industry
patrons included preaching orders such as Dominicans, and Franciscans
Trecentro artists and important works
Florentine School:
Large-scale panels (unlike Byz icons) which stand on own, not as part of an altar necessarily)
*Cimabue, Madonna Enthroned, 1280-90; tempera on panel. Byzantine influence;
elongated figures, gold background, Mary points to Christ as way to Salvation (she is the throne
of wisdom); ; maniera greca (like the Byzantines/Greeks)
***Giotto, Lamentation, Arena Chapel series, Padua, Italy, 1305, fresco. Shallow stage,
diagonal cliff leading to Christ’s head; emotions of angels and Mary with resignation of others;
light falls from rights and helps to isolate bodies
also
*Giotto, Madonna Enthroned, 1310, tempera on wood panel; more weighty than Cimabue;
slight perspective in throne; humanized face and natural turning. NATURALISTIC APPROACH
is precursor to Renaissance.
vs
Siennese School:
More decorative and elegant.
Thinner figures, elegant and courtly, rich colors =*(International Style) .
Sense of staging with open windows or doors.
**Duccio, Maesta, 1308, tempera on panel…for altar of Sienese Cathedral. Rich and complex
with decorative patterning on throne. Mary= Queen of Heaven
**Martini, Annunciation, 1333. International School—elongated bodies, gold, ornate, lilies
for purity; courtly gestures. Elaborate Gothic frame with pinnacles
**Lorenzetti, Good Government in the City and Country, 1338, Public Palace, Siena,
fresco
in public center for law; uses both latin and Italian; prosperous town scene, food comes into
city; country is peaceful and bountiful---idealized life of Siena city-state
*Lorenzetti, Birth of a Virgin, 1342, tempera
Triptych builds interior space with common focus; open windows show spatial depth of
outside. St. Anne gives birth to Mary.
Sculpture:
Pisano, Nicola (Father) mid 1200s --- Pisa artist crossing classical w/ Gothic.
The Pisa Pulpit (in Baptistry), 1259. Annunciation and Nativity. Crowded
composition yet calm; heavy drapery; facial expression yet static bodies.
Pisano, Giovanni (son), early 1300s
The Pisa Pulpit (in Cathedral), 1302. More spacious, less crowded. Deep cuts create
shadow; French Gothic embellishment and nervousness
Architecture:
Orvietto Cathedral, 1310----false, flat, broad, highly decorated façade masking narrow nave.
Elements of French Gothic with Classical Italain.
Florence Cathedral—1296. Clam, rational. Earthbound Italian vs Heaven-bound French
Gothic.
Milan Cathedral, 1386
Confused mix of late Gothic pinnacles and elaboarate tracery with flat façade and wide nave.
VOCAB:
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International Gothic Style
Maestra
Maniera greca
Predella
Tempera on panel
Trecento
Misc:
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Florence rises to prominence because of its wool industry. Relies on England for raw
ingredient.
Plague is devastating----Black Death (1348) kills more than ½ of all Florence