Art 261: Quiz 1

Artworks and Key Terms

Cimabue’s Madonna

Enthroned with angels and prophets, from Santa Trinità, Florence, Italy, ca. 1280–1290 (385 x 223 cm)

Byzantine influence is evident in six key elements:

Flat background

Frontal Pose

Elongated bodies

Garments (lines)

Hierarchical scale

Church-Throne

Naturalism

Representing people or nature in a detailed and accurate manner; the realistic depiction of objects in a natural setting.

Duccio's Maestà Altarpiece (front)

Maestà Altarpiece, Siena, Italy, 1308-1311 Conjectural reconstruction of the back of the Maestà

Front was made for everyone to view (general public and congregation of the Siena Cathedral)

Duccio's Maestà Altarpiece (back)

Maestà Altarpiece, Siena, Italy, 1308-1311 Conjectural reconstruction of the back of the Maestà

Back was created for certain people to be able to view: the clergy (priests, canons, and other church officials)

Giotto's Madonna and Child Enthroned

Church of Ognissanti (All-saints), Florence, Italy, ca. 1310 (325 cm × 204 cm- (128 in × 80in)

Giotto’s naturalism:

- weighty, solid, natural figures

- a more unified point of view and a cohesive composition

- more natural gestures

Giotto's Arena Chapel (program)

Giotto, frescos (Arena Chapel), Padua, Italy, 1305-06

Location of Frescoes in Arena Chapel (Giotti)

Sinful on the left, Righteous on the right

Grisaille

A method of painting in gray tones, typically to imitate sculpture

Pictoral Program

The complete set of imagery designed in a holistic and calculated manner

Lorenzetti's Sala dei nove frescoes: The Allegory of Good Government

Allegory and Effects of Good and Bad Government, 1338-39 (View of the Sala della Pace)

[Theological Virtues ] Hope, Charity, and Faith

[Moral Virtues] Peace, fortitude, prudence (Common Good), magnanimity, temperance, and justice

The Effects of Good Government in the City

Lorenzetti’s Sala dei nove frescoes: The Effects of Good Government in the Countryside

Lorenzetti’s Sala dei nove frescoes: The Allegory and Effects of Bad Government

Simone Martini's The Annunciation

Siena, Italy 1333 184 x 168 cm

Brunelleschi's Sacrifice of Isaac

Sacrifice of Isaac (competition panels for the doors of the Florence Baptistery), 1401–02

Tied with Ghiberti

Technique and Material: Casting, Gilding, & Bronze, Gold

Ghiberti's Sacrifice of Isaac

Sacrifice of Isaac (competition panels for the doors of the Florence Baptistery), 1401–02

Tied with Brunelleschi

Technique and Material: Casting, Gilding, & Bronze, Gold

Ghiberti's Gates of Paradise

Gates of Paradise at the Florence Baptistry, 1425–52

Technique and Material: Casting and Bronze

Masaccio's Holy Trinity

Holy Trinity, c. 1427, fresco, 667 x 317 cm (Santa Maria Novella, Florence)

Technique: Fresco, Linear Perspective

Linear Perspective

A mathematical art technique that creates the illusion of three-dimensional depth on a flat, two-dimensional surface using converging lines and vanishing points

Pictorial space and Linear Perspective are NOT the same thing

Arab mathematician Ibn al-Haytham (965-1040), whose Optics devised linear or one-eye perspective

Two key properties of light according to Ibn al-Haytham

1. Light reflects

2. Light travels in a straight line

Vanishing Point

A vanishing point is a spot on the horizon where parallel lines seem to come together and disappear in the distance

Iconography

The identification, description, and interpretation of the content, subjects, and symbols used in visual art

Foreshortening

An art technique where an object or human body appears compressed, shorter, and larger as it points directly toward the viewer or recedes into deep space

Atmospheric perspective

An art and photography technique that shows depth by mimicking how air, dust, and moisture scatter light over long distances

Orthogonals (also called orthogonal lines)

The vanishing point, and the horizon line

Pictorial Space

The illusion of a three-dimensional world created on a flat, two-dimensional surface like a canvas or piece of paper

Pictorial space and Linear Perspective are NOT the same thing

• You can have pictorial space without having linear perspective

Masaccio's Tribute Money

Masaccio, Tribute Money, c. 1427, fresco (Brancacci Chapel, Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence)

Technique: Fresco, Contrapposto, Linear Perspective

Fra Angelico's Annunciation

1425 - 1426, Height: 190.3 cm; Width: 191.5 cm

This altarpiece was painted for the monastery of Santo Domenico in Fiesole, near Florence.

The central panel shows the Archangel Gabriel’s Annunciation to Mary under a portico. On the left, Adam and Eve are being expelled from Paradise. The damnation and salvation of Humanity.

Contrapposto

Pose of a figure standing at rest, with weight shifted onto one leg, balanced but asymmetrical, with twisting or bending of the body's vertical axis.

Chiaroscuro

Technique of contrasting light and dark within a picture, especially where forms are largely determined by the meeting of lighter and darker areas.

Memento mori

Memento mori is a Latin phrase that translates to "remember that you must die". It functions as an artistic, symbolic, or meditative reminder of the inevitability of human mortality.

Humanism

A cultural movement from the Renaissance that shifted focus from strictly religious themes to human potential, emotion, and individual dignity

High relief; Low relief

High relief projects boldly and can look almost fully 3D, while low relief stays flat and close to the surface

Botticelli's Birth of Venus

The Birth of Venus, c. 1483–85, tempera on canvas, 172.5 x 278.5 cm (Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence)

Material: Tempera paint, Canvas

Technique: Chiaroscuro, Contrapposto