Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
In Giotto’s Madonna and Child Enthroned I see an older renaissance painting of a woman and her child. The child is sitting on the lap of his mother who is sitting on a large burgundy throne in the middle of the painting. The woman is dressed in a navy cloak while her child is clothed in a pink robe. Above the child’s head there is a yellow circle. This circle is a renaissance symbol for religious leadership or importance. Surrounding this throne are a gathering of angels. There are exactly seven angels on each side worshiping this mother and child. The background consists of a yellow brick pattern.
In this painting there is a strong presence of the color element. There is a strong contrast in lighting between the mother and child and the angels worshiping on the outside. The mother and child are painted in a vibrant pinkish rose hue while the surrounding angels are a slightly darker mix of green shades. The painting also offers a good variation of saturation when it comes to the fading yellow brick background. The pallets used
…show more content…
This painting is a great example of asymmetrical balance. The angels are placed nearly exactly identical on each side of the throne. The angels themselves are sort of mirroring one another. Besides the navy cloak worn by the woman this painting does a great job at equally distributing the visual weight. The yellow hue is found to be consistent throughout. Giotto did a good job at blending and balancing the colors from yellow all the way to green. There is also a great deal of emphasis found throughout Giotto’s painting. The woman holding her child is definitely the main focal point of the painting because it is found directly in the center on a throne worshiped by angels. There is also a great deal of emphasis found on each character of the painting by the light yellow halo found above their heads. This does a good job at emphasizing everyone’s importance in the
They might not be very prominent, but they exist the painting and serve as the base for creation. For starters, the window pane contains lines that highlight its simple design. Simplicity remains as the core of this work. Moreover, sill is roughly represented by a thick brown line underneath the window as a boundary in a quietly brilliant fashion. The work has a wonderful color allocation to express the mood. The color is limited within the muted palette color range. Grey—the intermediate color of black and white, is the dominate color for both exterior view and the interior part, as a matter of fact, the observer notices that nearly all colors are mixed instead of natural this work. The cloudy sky corresponds to the grey color of the wall, yet the brightness is not influenced. However, this consistency has successfully created a cold, grave and silent environment for a crowded place such as New York. The whole environment of this painting seems to be surrounded by the negative and depressive
The painting is organized simply. The background of the painting is painted in an Impressionist style. The blurring of edges, however, starkly contrasts with the sharp and hard contours of the figure in the foreground. The female figure is very sharp and clear compared to the background. The background paint is thick compared to the thin lines used to paint the figures in the foreground. The thick paint adds to the reduction of detail for the background. The colors used to paint the foreground figures are vibrant, as opposed to the whitened colors of the Impressionist background. The painting is mostly comprised of cool colors but there is a range of dark and light colors. The light colors are predominantly in the background and the darker colors are in the foreground. The vivid color of the robe contrasts with the muted colors of the background, resulting in an emphasis of the robe color. This emphasis leads the viewer's gaze to the focal part of the painting: the figures in the foreground. The female and baby in the foreground take up most of the canvas. The background was not painted as the artist saw it, but rather the impression t...
...is the focal point with the orthogonal of the gestures of the apostles lining up towards it. Masaccio makes good use of chiaroscuro, since his figures have soft, round edges and their bodies are apparent under their drapery. The drapery shows creases and edges which allow for that to happen. Masaccio also employs directed lighting in which the sun comes from the right and all the figures’ shadows are to the left, which is what would happen in real life. Furthermore, Masaccio uses soft, subdued colors, such as green, blue, and pink. The mood of Massacio’s painting is static with all the figures standing in contrapposto with their one knee sticking out and the individuals in Classical and naturalistic proportions. Masaccio placed his scene in the recognizable Arno Valley. Also, Masaccio’s story has no disguised symbolism and rather depicts a straightforward story.
By most accounts, the year 1500 was in the midst of the height of the Italian Renaissance. In that year, Flemmish artist Jean Hey, known as the “Master of Moulins,” painted “The Annunciation” to adorn a section of an alter piece for his royal French patrons. The painting tells the story of the angel Gabriel’s visit to the Virgin Mary to deliver the news that she will give birth to the son of God. As the story goes, Mary, an unwed woman, was initially terrified about the prospects of pregnancy, but eventually accepts her fate as God’s servant. “The Annunciation” is an oil painting on a modest canvas, three feet tall and half as wide. The setting of the painting is a study, Mary sitting at a desk in the bottom right hand corner reading, and the angel Gabriel behind her holding a golden scepter, perhaps floating and slightly off the canvas’s center to the left. Both figures are making distinct hand gestures, and a single white dove, in a glowing sphere of gold, floats directly above Mary’s head. The rest of the study is artistic but uncluttered: a tiled floor, a bed with red sheets, and Italian-style architecture. “The Annunciation” was painted at a momentous time, at what is now considered the end of the Early Renaissance (the majority of the 15th Century) and the beginning of the High Renaissance (roughly, 1495 – 1520). Because of its appropriate placement in the Renaissance’s timeline and its distinctly High Renaissance characteristics, Jean Hey’s “Annunciation” represents the culmination of the transition from the trial-and-error process of the Early Renaissance, to the technical perfection that embodied the High Renaissance. Specifically, “Annunciation” demonstrates technical advancements in the portrayal of the huma...
The immediate background consists of natural mounds of dirt and a brick wall that enclose the Virgin, Child, and St. John, amplifying the protective effect that Mary’s figure has. The dirt mounds roll inward with a brick wall bordering them on the right, drawing the viewer’s attention towards the three figures. The background is painted in broad terms, with a simple, uniform depiction of tree leaves and smooth rock faces on the horizon. This contrasts with the fine-lined detail and texture of Mary’s hair, facial features, and veil, which further contribute to her elegance and highlight her
Color is used to draw attention to important characters and objects in the painting. The red of Mary’s shirt emphasizes her place as the main figure. A bright, yellow cloud floating above the room symbolizes the joy of the angelic figures. De Zurbaran uses warm colors in the foreground. The room, used as the background for the scene, is painted in dark colors utilizing different hues of gray and brown.
The painting is intimate, almost as if was not meant for the eyes of the viewer. The mother gently holds the baby, within her arms, as she feeds him. The mother’s gaze is met by the child as it reaches out to touch her face. The background is simple, emphasizing the closeness between the mother and child, much like Le Brun’s piece. Additionally, Cassatt’s The Child's Bath, 1893 “with its striking and unorthodox composition, is one of Cassatt’s masterworks” (“The Child's Bath”). Within this composition, she employed the use of unconventional devices such as cropped forms, bold patterns and outlines, and a flattened perspective (“The Child's Bath”). Cassatt utilizes a pastel-like color scheme, exemplifying the delicateness and tenderness between the mother and her bathing child. Her brush strokes are swift and gentle, again, suggesting the passionate, yet soft, love the mother has for her child. The elevated vantage point invites the viewer to observe this intimate moment, but not to
The depiction of Madonna and Christ is among the most ancient and common in Christian iconography and has an extensive number of variations because apart from its symbolic religious functions, it allows one to interpret the link between mother and child in many aspects. (8)
As discussed by Kloss (2005), the subject matter of Giotto’s Arena Chapel (1303-05) and Duccio’s Maestà (1308–11) are similarly both narrative cycles of Christian biblical scenes depicting the lives of the Virgin Mary and Jesus Christ. Giotto’s cycle of paintings were done in frescoes which adorn the walls of the Arena Chapel in Padua Italy. Duccio’s Maestà was a double sided altarpiece for the Cathedral of Siena, Siena, Italy with tempera and gold on wood. The main frontal image is the Madonna and Child Enthroned and the reverse side consists of forty smaller images of biblical accounts from the life of Mary and Jesus.
Each figure has a combination of blue and another color, where blue unifies all three (Levinson 352). The figures sitting around the table have gentle faces and quiet concentration, this is further expressed in the rhythmical arrangement and composition of the figures. The wings of the angels are painted in gold. Their seats are also gold along with the chalice in the center. The light shines around their heads, creating a golden halo which signifies purity. It is believed that the son was dressed in the deepest colors; a reddish brown garment that represents heaven and earth. The next figure is the Father who wears all the colors which can show him representing the universe. On the right would be believed to be the figure of the Holy Spirit. This figure wears blue which represents the sky (Levinson 352). Andrei Rublev was also notable for his depictions of Christ in various
Raphael’s painting is arranged with the Madonna in the middle and the two infants placed in her arms and at her feet, allowing for them to capture the viewer’s attention as well. There is no one focal character, as each is placed to draw attention to all three of the characters as a whole, something that is not seen in Titian’s Venus of Urbino. In Titian’s, Venus of Urbino, Venus is clearly intended to be the main focal point, whereas the two other characters in the background are meant to support but not overpower Venus herself. The differentiation between these two character placements in each painting is extremely important when it comes to determining the overall meaning and understanding what the artist was trying to portray with their works of
“The Met’s very own Mona Lisa” (Tomkins 9). That is what Duccio di Buoninsegna’s Madonna and Child painting is known as today. “The Metropolitan Museum of Art bought the Madonna and Child for forty-five to fifty million dollars” (Tomkins 1). However, the painting was not always in public hands; in fact, the Met purchased the last known work of Duccio in private hands. Originally, the painting was held in the private hands of Adolphe Stoclet and his wife. When the couple died, their house and their collection went to their son, Jacques who held onto the painting, and passed it down to his daughters who lent it to an exhibition in Siena of Duccio and his school. The painting was eventually withdrawn from the exhibition and sold (Tomkins 2). Madonna and Child painting dated 1300 and was painted by Duccio di Buoninsegna a Sienese painter, who is considered the founder of modern Italian painting. I chose to research this painting because the subject matter of religious imagery and symbols interests me. Also because when I looked at the painting the emotion on the Madonna’s face almost jumped out at me. It is as if, she is looking at her newborn child with this deep sadness, which almost makes you think that the painting is foreshadowing the death of Jesus Christ. In addition, the burns of the side of the frame peaked my interest, as to why they were there. Art critics were also interested in this work they even consider Madonna and Child one of Duccio’s perfect works, and it said to be worth all the other paintings exhibited under the name of Duccio (Christiansen 14). The Madonna and Child painting’s iconography, imagery, emotional appeal to the viewers, and meaning all make this painting still a great work of art today.
The paintings represents Herod’s ploy to remain King and control the city of Bethlehem. Roman Soldiers ripping children from the arms of their parents. Mothers and fathers are viewed in despair as they fight to protect their babies. Dead babies lie on the ground being trample over as soldiers continue with their rampage of terror on the innocent victims. A woman stands in the center of the picture holding a bloody diaper centering the attention into the background in view of King Herod castle. Three angels tower over the war between the town citizens and the soldiers as they continue to murder innocent children. The oil painting depicts several different elements; undoubtedly, it is a two dimensional work of art. Rubens’ color scale remained bright; he broke them up and blended them more subtly, achieving a coloristic oscillation of great variety and charm (Held and Posner
The Renaissance created an opportunity for master artists to publish their works and establish their reputation while elite patrons utilized an agent's creation as a means to express wealth, status, or embellishment a historical event. Aristocratic patrons utilized the artist's creation to elevate social status among the social elite. Often times, art was funded for the purpose of creating shifts in a social structure. Before a project was developed, an artist often negotiated with a patron(s) so to be diligent in their efforts since the sum of expenses and risk an artist accepted was rewarded by how well a creation was acknowledged by viewers. Ultimately, private and corporate patrons during the Renaissance employed master artists to propagate an idea of prestige, social status, or embellish a historical event through a perspective not equally unified with the majority of viewers.
By comparison to the identified paintings of Raphael, discrepancies can be spotted from both clothing of Virgin Mary and the spatial arrangement. In Madonna in the Pinks, Mary is clothed in light grayish violet, tones of yellow and blue, which is unusual in Raphael's Madonna-themed paintings. Except Madonna with the Fish (fig. 1) in which Mary dressed in blue and white, contrasting the saints with red robes, in other more than 30 Madonnas painted by Raphael such as Small Cowper Madonna (fig, 2) and Ansidei Madonna (fig.3) around the same period as Madonna in the Pinks, red dress with blue cloak, either lighter or deeper red and blue, seem to be the designated colour of her costume. They are the symbolic colors of the life-sustaining energy of the Eucharist and purity respectively. In addition, the overall unusual color use is noted by Beck that the “cold tonalities” are “uncharacteristic” of Raphael’s. In treatment of space, as pointed out by Beck, the proportion of the elements is condensed that there is “ a lack of space available on all four sides provide for a crowed field in which a third flower held in...