Early Italian Reniassance Art History Midterm 2026

Cimabue

Madonna Enthroned

c. 1285, Tempura on panel

• Mary and Christ, angels surrounding, 4 prophets holding texts under the thrown

• Prophets literally supporting Mary+Christ in this piece

• Cimabue work in a Byzantine style; creates distance between humans and the divine; but he is also looking forward

• the line work that flattens out this piece is called Chrysography

• Positioning is used in this piece

Pietro Cavallini

Last Judgement

C. 1290, fresco

Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, Rome

• Interested in a move towards naturalism sooner than Giotto

• more interested in contrast, has depth, 3D

• uses a sense of light to model form and tone

• experimenting, doing something fresh, not necessarily an improvement

• taste plays a factor here; responding to whats happening and patrons see that

• taste is changing during this period

Giotto

Arena Chapel, Padua

C. 1305

• Was at one point sitting within the wall of an Arena

• Fresco program was “the salvation of human kind through Christ

  • was important to Scrovegni family, place of worship and burial, Enrico hoped it would save his father Reginaldo from damnation (Usurer=giver of money with high interest rates)

• Challenges

  • Many surfaces to paint

  • Clearly narrating this Christian story

  • decorating the space

• Giotto would have received a list of scenes from the chapels Confessor to paint

• Giotto brings Drama into these scenes (Florentine School of Painting)

• Workshops were a necessary part of these works

• Made of Fresco

Giotto

Expulsion of Joachim from the Temple

C. 1305

Arena Chapel, Padua

• Uses positioning and gesture to make drama

  • Joachim being physically pushed off the platform

• Story comes from the Apocrypha

Giotto

Meeting at the Golden Gate

C. 1305

Arena Chapel, Padua

• Lots of emotion, bringing humanity to the divine

• Mary’s mom is first divine pregnancy

Duccio

Maesta (Virgin & Christ Enthroned with Saints)

1308-11, tempera on panel

• Most powerful contemporary alternative to fresco

• Naturalism, humanize the divine

• focuses on pattern and flowing line (gothic style) rather than volume

• strong link to older christian art, the Byzantine tradition (sacred)

• closer look

  • 4 kneeling saints (minor saints of Siena, intercessors)

  • Naturalistic wings

  • using tone to suggest form

  • unified through gesture and faces

  • textiles!!!

• commissioned by city, installed in cathedral

• one of the few signed pieces out there

Duccio

Last Supper (back of Maesta)

1308-12, tempura on panel

• Bright deep greens

• celebration of everyday life

• relatable table setting

• before the more common depiction of The Last Supper

• Disciples on both sides of the table

Simone Martini

Maesta

1315, fresco

Palazzo Pubblico, Siena

• religious piece for the magistrates of Siena

• Square frame that resembles a textile/tapestry(expensive looking)

• Ceremonial fabric to symbolize honor

• naturalism, not perfectly lined up, space recedes back

• International Gothic Style→ applies to wealthy and royal patrons

• pooling of fabric at feet, thrown design, fabric detail, surface detail

Simone Martini

Annunciation with Two Saints

C. 1330

tempera and gold leaf on panel

• International Gothic Style

• First Annunciation altarpiece

  • Mary disturbed by Gabriel’s news and angelic altarpiece

• Details

  • copious amounts of gold leaf, starburst halos

  • covered in amazingly detailed textiles, plaid painted in motion

  • took creative liberties for Gabe’s wings

  • White Lilly= symbol of the virgin

  • Mary: pulling away, detailed headband, pooling fabric

Ambrogio Lorenzetti

Allegory of Good and Bad Government

1338, fresco

Sala di Pace, Palazzo Pubblico, Siena

• Personification of Common Good

• Scene is meant to evoke ruler-ship, elevate ideas like you do royalty

• Two Babies at Common Goods feet sucking on She-Wolf

  • Siena’s founding myth is connected to Romes

  • the two sons of Remus rode into Siena on one white and black horse and founded Siena

• Mural insists that violence be entrusted to the collective state rather than individuals, enforcing necessary self defense

• Justice controls two scales representing distributive and communicative justice

• “Flanking the male personification are the virtues under which the Sienese governors were expected to literally unite”

Ambrogio Lorenzetti

Effects of Good Government on the City and the Countryside

1338, fresco

Sala di Pace

• elaborates visually on the benefits of proper government

• love of textiles, Sienese school of art influence

• new architecture, trade, safety of women and children

• protected countryside, ensuring it was safe outside city walls

  • safe, farms with animals and tilling their fields

• contemporary clothing, brings landscape down to essentials, impression of lush landscape (ahead of his time)

• stripped cathedral tower and dome identified the setting as Siena

Pietro Lorenzetti

The Birth of the Virgin

1342, tempera on panel, 6’ 1.5’’ x 5’ 11’’

• Treated the frame as if it wasn’t there or that its architecture

• creating space beyond the frame, making it look like windows into a room

  • (NO ARTIST HAS DONE THIS BEFORE THIS PIECE(that we know of…))

• typical Sienese domestic interior, relatable to viewer

• textiles

• Narrative focuses on most dramatic moment

• Polytych, triptych, Predella

Unknown Artist

Annunciation

early 14th C., fresco

Santissima Annunziata, Florence

• Legend: started in 1252 by Fra Bartolomeo who fell asleep after struggling to paint Virgins face, when he woke up the painting was finished by angelic hands

• Data analysis shows otherwise ha ha

• Details:

  • words going backwards towards the lord instead of Gabe speaking to Virgin

  • gold leaf Pastiglia

  • Marys huge crown and necklaces

  • detailed gold frame + jewels sitting atop glass covering

  • Mary more receptive to news

  • dove making b-line to Mary

  • ornateness in backsplash and floor rather than textiles

• Importance to Florence

  • Lorenzo ignores it completely because they value attribution more

  • imported holy painting during 14th C., if prayer answered, people would leave ex-votos at the painting

  • women often prayed to the Virgin for children

  • Incredibly relevant to day-to-day Florentine life+important leaders foreign would come visit the painting first before meeting with Florence Leaders

Michelozzo and Portigiani

Tabernacle for the Annunciation

1448-52

Santissima Annunziata, Florence

• commissioned by Piero de’ Medici (son of Cosimo)

• draws attention to painting and to Medici wealth

• they don’t leave their coat of arms or signature, it was just a known fact

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Orcagna

Strozzi Altarpiece

1354-57, tempera on panel

Sta. Maria Novella

• Assumed this style is due to the Black Plague

• Mary is on one side giving St. Thomas the law and Authority to St. Peter

• Dominican are teaching monks, and in charge of inquisition

• behind St. Thomas is Virgin Mary with arm on his shoulder, gesturing to Christ

• Christ looks like he’s levitating

• Polyptych, but treats it like its all the same piece, not limited by the divided panels

• Giotto’s influence on Orcagna is the bodies volumetric and pose wise

• no spacial recession, not using hieretic scale, 2d

• Icon quality, is he staring at or through us?

• we aren’t welcome in this piece

• All painters in this style are for Dominican churches

  • they were interested in this style, it wasn’t really about the Black Plague

Taddeo Gaddi

Life of the Virgin

c.1328-30, fresco

Baroncelli Chapel, Santa Croce

• tie to the human in the divine was an appeal to this chapel

• payed for by Baroncelli family

• pallet different, more pastel, informed by Sienese paintings (Duccio)

• Cangiante modeling

Taddeo Gaddi

Expulsion of Joachim from the Temple (at left)

1328-30, fresco

Baroncelli Chapel, Santa Croce, Florence

• two scenes in one panel

Lorenzo Ghiberti

North Doors

1403-24 bronze w/gilding

Baptistry, Florence

• Scenes from the new testament

• kept pisono’s design in mind

  • top 20 panels life of Christ

  • 4 evangelists 4 panels 2nd to last

  • Last 4 fathers of the church

• includes Ghiberti self portrait

• oxidation from car pollution

Lorenzo Ghiberti

Annunciation, from North Doors

1403-24

Baptistry, Florence

• distills down to just key elements

• architecture

• Gabriel flying in

• uses opposites

• What he’s learned from ancient statues + relief carving (Contrapposto/Hip-Shot-Pose)

Donatello

David

1408-9, marble

Florence

• old testament king, prophet writer of the Psalms

• David and Goliath story

• Type for Christ

  • David slew Goliath to save the nation of isreal just as Christ sacrificed himself to save humankind

  • David defeated Goliath just as Christ defeated Satan

  • David was king, Christ=King of Heaven

  • David was Shepard (OT) and in NT Christ describes himself as the Good Shepard who lays down his life for his flock (Christian Faith)

• Why David so Popular in Florence?

  • Equated w/ civic republican value of self-sacrifice for Common Good and the righteous triumph of one over ones enemies

  • as a result, he became seen as the protector of Florentine Republic

  • David was gonna go on North of the Cathedral roof but statue was too small; ended up inside the Gov. Building (Palazzo Vecchio)

• Visual Details

  • youthful, tight leather clothing

  • standing in confident manner, hand on hip (Arm Akimbo)

  • Aware of us looking at him (unusual, FIRST OF ITS KIND)

  • used to hold a lyre

  • long neck, graceful, tilted head on an angle

  • idealization of the face

Lorenzo Ghiberti

St. John the Baptist

c. 1410, bronze

Originally on Orsanmichele, Florence

• Commisioned by the Calimala

• ONLY OVER LIFE-SIZED BRONZE STATUE IN FLORENCE

• John depicted wearing his hair shirt, woolen garment over that (luxurious)

• carrying reed cross, holding scroll unfurled

• eyes inn layered silver, details on cloaks boarder, lower on garment signed Opus Lorentii

• Contrapposto/Hip-Shot-Pose

Donatello

St. Mark

1411-13, marble

(Originally Orsanmichele) Florence

• commissioned by the Linen Merchants Guild (Limaiuoli)

• St. Mark, one of the writers of the first four books of the gospel

• Guild couldn’t afford the bronze

• Sculpture was thin, but sculpted well to give volume in the nitche

• Facial details are low relief

• Contrapposto/Hip-Shot-Pose

  • 1ST EXAMPLE IN FREE STANDING ITALIAN SCULPTURE SINCE ANTIQUITY

• distinct quality to him, individual nature to his sculpture

• possible he was looking at Republican portrait in Roman portrait in Roman period

  • extreme naturalism

• lengthened the torso of the figure so that the figure looked proportional from the lower ground view people were at when it was in the nitche

• pillow st. mark is standing on is signifier it was for the Linen Guild

  • they made many linen covers for pillows

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Nanni di Banco

Four Crowned Saints

1413-14, marble

(Originally Orsanmichele) Florence

• Stone and Timber Masters Guild

• Nanni probably was honored to represent his guild, but also a lot of pressure

• HUGE CHALLENGE

  • four figures in one nitche

• they are sculptures who were put to death for refusing to sculpt a Roman god

• center figure sculpted in the round, rest are thin/flat/unsculpted in the back

• How did he do this?

  • Places figures in semi circle, helps with composition, void activates space outside the nitche, invites us in

  • puts them on grey marble base to call attention to the guild

  • carved drapery inside the nitche, goes behind all of them, uniifies group

• Influences from Roman Sculpture

  • trying to make individual faces

  • in direct competition with ancient sculptures, showing off

Donatello

St. George

1415-18, Marble

(Originally Orsanmichele) Florence

• Lots of shadow in this nitche

• Legend: 1st century soldier, in elite guard, emperor commanded him to convert his faith, soldier refused, executed

• Metal Workers Guild, Armors Guild

• Piece is in marble but Armors Guild had Metal pieces to show off their wears (All Lost)

• Armor

  • redifining architectural sculpture of figure on a building

  • tense young man, getting ready for something

• Looks like he’s thinking, looking off in distance, probably dragon (shielf has obvious wear and tear)

  • Oblivious compared to David

• Stance comes from Cadottiere

• Marble needs to be supported, cant support itself

  • drapes george in cloak to create enough extra support

Donatello

St. George and the Dragon

1415-18, Marble

(Originally Orsanmichele) Florence

• George saving princess from dragon

• Shallow relief, almost has painter quality

• Rilievo Schiacciato = ”mashed” or “squashed” relief

  • 1ST TIME ANYONE EVER MADE A RELIEF LIKE THIS