St Louis, Donatello

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St Louis of Toulouse = Former Medieval bishop & Fransiscan Saint.

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Date?

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1422

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Art History

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47 Terms

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Subject matter?

St Louis of Toulouse = Former Medieval bishop & Fransiscan Saint.

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Date?

1422

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Scale?

2.66m

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Original location?

Or San Michele

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Moved to and when?

Moved in 1466 to the church of Santa Croce

(Centre of Guelph activity)

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positioned on the central axis (interpretation)

highlights importance and religious power, emphasises connection with heaven/god

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shell niche made from marble (interpretation)

symbolising pilgrimage, expensive and prestigious

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closed composition (interpretation)

shows humility and modesty

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solemn facial expression, looking up (interpretation)

spiritual connection with god/heaven

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strong diagonal created through croisier and drapery (interpretation)

creates animation and motion towards heaven

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large scale object, however he appears smaller (interpretation)

St Louis was modest and humble

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classical niche (interpretation)

balanced and harmonious, referencing antiquity

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heavy and engulfing swathes of drapery, concealing his body (interpretation)

shows modesty and christian values

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composition (3 points)

  1. gilded bronze sculpture of St Louis of Toulouse
  2. in the round and supported by niche
  3. left hand raised and left foot pointing out
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colour (3 points)

  1. golden bronze, gilded apart from mitre
  2. embellishment of crosier, worked into after casting
  3. white marble niche, purity and heaven
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style (3 points)

  1. early renaissance
  2. classical influences
  3. international gothic influences
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three-dimensional space (3 points)

  1. animation through drapery
  2. right foot pointed out
  3. receding planes and -ve space filled
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light and tone (3 points)

  1. high sheen from gilding
  2. bronze illuminated by light
  3. shadows created through heavy drapery
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texture, pattern, ornament and decoration (3 points)

  1. classical decoration: St Peter’s shell and detailed relief
  2. thick texture of drapery conceals body
  3. symmetry creates pattern
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materials, techniques and processes (3 points)

  1. fire-gilt bronze and supported by marble niche
  2. high tensile strength
  3. polished to a high sheen
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volume, mass and form (3 points)

  1. volumous drapery
  2. huge sense of mass
  3. drew people’s interests into the building
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line (3 points)

  1. central axis created which mitre is positioned on
  2. strong diagonal through crosier
  3. curvilinear lines
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scale (3 points)

  1. larger than life size but appears smaller
  2. 2.66m
  3. crosier adds to height and religious status
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who commissioned St Louis?

The Guelph Party

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how did Donatello achieve recognition?

St George, commissioned by the Armourer’s gild for Or San Michele

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what influenced Donatello to produce St Louis?

Ghiberti’s St Stephen and John the Baptist

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who inspired Donatello’s interest in antiquity and role of drapery? and which work of art?

Nanni di Banco’s four saints (1414-16)

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Vasari source

“like the distinguished works of the ancient Greeks and Romans”

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Charles Avery source

“the niche may owe something to Brunelleschi”

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Paoletti and Radke source

“overworked, volumetric folds”

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who did he train with and what did this give him?

Trained with Ghiberti which gave him an excellent understanding of casting and working with bronze.

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How was his understanding of Classicism aided?

his visit to Rome in 1402 with Brunelleschi.

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who was he influenced by and in terms of what?

He was influenced by early Renaissance painters, such as Masaccio, in terms of his naturalism.

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How was he influenced by Giotto?

Giotto influenced display of human emotion & left foot reaching out to the viewer.

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Who was the niche inspired by?

  • Brunelleschi

  • Completed in partnership with Michelozzo.

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Why was his partnership with Michelozzo significant?

  • Marked beginning of important working relationship.

  • E.g. the Funeral Monument to Pope John (1424-7).

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what was he influenced by philosophically and what triggered this?

Humanism triggered by the visit to Rome in 1402 with Brunelleschi

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Who was St Louis and what did he symbolise?

a former Medieval bishop and Franciscan Saint that symbolised humility

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who did the Guelph party support?

the Pope

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what was St Louis replaced by and when?

Vercocchio’s doubting Thomas in 1466

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why was St Louis replaced?

Lorenzo de Medici saw the Guelph party as a threat and wanted to minimise their influence in Florence.

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Where was St Louis moved?

Santa Croce which was a centre for Guelph activity.

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what had been done to the bronze to make it appear as if it was made from solid gold?

fire-gilded

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why was fire-gilding significant economically? (2)

it flattered the Merchants who supported the Guelph party and it was very expensive and prestigious

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Donatello was excellent at exploiting bronze, but what challenges did he face?

The drapery was complex so it had to be cast in pieces.

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what does fire-gilding involve?

Making a paste from gold and mercury which was then applied to the surface. This was then heated, and the mercury would evaporate.

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Why was the niche so important?

  • Technologically advanced

  • First fully classical niche of the Renaissance.