DOCSLIB.ORG

Adoration of the Magi by Leonardo Da Vinci After Restoration (Gallery of Statues and Tion of the Magi Is As Important Ate Topic Among Scholars

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Adoration of the Magi by Leonardo Da Vinci After Restoration (Gallery of Statues and Tion of the Magi Is As Important Ate Topic Among Scholars Free publication on www.friendsoftheuffizigallery.org Polistampa - Firenze JOURNAL OF THE FRIENDS OF THE UFFIZI GALLERY No. 68 - April 2017 The Unchained Intelligence of Leonardo The restoration of the sages being an image that was “Adoration”, made possible never finished, not even in the thanks to the generous mind of the artist. support of the Amici, The first step was diagnostic restores a true testing: lengthy in procedure, sophisticated, of wide spectrum; understanding of the artist next, the epochal decision to in a tempest of brushwork proceed with restoration; a cou- expressing the master’s rageous decision as the work incessant mental activity proves to be one of the most dif- ficult by Leonardo. At the same time, the activities of the cura- he Amici degli Uffizi have tors and technicians, practically Tprovided an immense gift their every move in this demand- not only to “their” museum but ing challenge, underwent the also to all humanity. In effect, scrutiny of the public: Leonardo the restoration of the Adora- is a pop icon as well as a passion- The Adoration of the Magi by Leonardo da Vinci after restoration (Gallery of Statues and tion of the Magi is as important ate topic among scholars. Cer- Paintings of the Uffizi). as that of the Tondo Doni by Mi- tainly, expectations are many chelangelo and the Last Supper and diverse when facing the pos- – especially in most recent times Adoration of the Magi gradually in Santa Maria delle Grazie, sibility of “reading” a work that – had somewhat obscured. progressed, not only were sub- once again by Leonardo. On was previously almost invisible; A discourse that also holds the contrary, it presented ma- but this restoration has restored true for those in charge the re- Eike D. Schmidt jor levels of difficulty because a true understanding of the art- storers, the art historians: be- Director of the Uffizi Galleries the panel has no settled pas- ist that novelistic popularization cause as the restoration of the (cont.d page 2) An extraordinary adventure Now that it is over, it is with great pride that we admire the results of value to us all. And all was made possible here in Florence, thanks to the restoration on the extraordinary masterpiece by Leonardo, the the wealth of skill and expertise that this city of art can boast: from Adoration of the Magi; it has been a long voyage lasting six years and a the rally of funding from our fellow members to the diagnostics, test- unique experience in the over twenty-year long history of the Amici ing, study and research and the cleaning and restoration carried out degli Uffizi. It was 2011 when the then current director of the Uffizi, by the staff of the Opificio delle Pietre Dure under the direction of Antonio Natali, contacted us as possible patrons for the restoration of Marco Ciatti. Each step was taken here, and the result of this choral the masterwork. We took up the commitment – notable for our forces effort empowered us all to fulfill our greatest expectations, right up to – with responsible determination and awareness, a privilege that today the ‘homecoming’ of a work that represents the highest expression of finds us the truly proud participants of an unrepeatable adventure, Leonardo’s creative furor. studded with many exciting moments along the path of the restoration A celebration that also rewards the unity of intent and sentiment with of this masterpiece that unites absolute beauty with material fragility, which the Association of the Amici operates, renewing its faithfulness the deterioration of which had to be arrested and prevented further. to the programs and activities of the Uffizi, in full collaboration with We are happy to have been partners in this important restitution, in the director Eike Schmidt. the homecoming to the Uffizi of Leonardo’s “Cosmo Magico”, now completely legible in its admirable iconographic detail. Moreover, the Maria Vittoria Colonna Rimbotti certainty of its conservation for future generations is of inestimable President of Friends of the Uffizi IL GIORNALE degli UFFIZI 1 (from page 1) with restoration complete, example to the dark marks in Andrea Santacesaria for their how natural it comes to stand correspondence to the head inventiveness and expertise in lime passages of painting dis- for longer moments examin- of the Christ Child), we essen- wood construction and con- covered but also new avenues ing the painting, to discover tially decided to take no further solidation. It can surely be said opened in comprehending previously concealed intrica- action, deferring the eventual that the Opificio delle Pietre the staggering, unchained cies and drawings of figures, removal to a time in the fu- Dure is the only institution that intelligence underlying it animals, landscape details ture when more sophisticated can guarantee to the world all; on the painted surface in that multiply the interpretive means will probably be capable today a result of this aesthetic fact, beyond the main repre- combinations. of identifying materials with and cultural significance. sentation, various texts and It took time, prudence greater certainty. On your part, dear Amici, subtexts came to light, in a and, above all, the intelli- I would just like to add a few we have received all that a mu- play of brushwork express- gence of a small army of ex- words to say how lucky we are, seum can desire from its sup- ing the incessant mental ac- perts, from the moment An- how lucky the whole world is, porters: not only unprece- tivity of the artist. If we con- tonio Natali commenced the to have been able here in Flor- dented generosity, but also sider the Uffizi a living body, restoration together with the ence to call on the intelligence, unconditioned trust and infi- and the works within it the former Superintendent Cristi- expertise and experience of two nite patience without which body’s limbs, then the Ado- na Acidini. Since my arrival, a restorers like Roberto Bellucci we could not have completed ration of the Magi is the most year and a half ago – which co- and Patrizia Riitano, both from this project, one that will re- highly sophisticated organ, incided with the very delicate the Opificio delle Pietre Dure, main exemplary in the history the brain; and each brush- phase of the final cleaning – I who represent the highest level of the Uffizi, in the history of stroke is a pictorial synapsis. have made many decisions on of competence in contemporary restoration, in the history of It is as though Leonardo un- how to proceed, together with restoration, Italian and interna- Leonardo. veils to the observer his most my colleagues from the Opifi- tional; to which I add the admi- intimate thoughts: and now, cio. In some cases (I refer for ration due to Ciro Castelli and Eike D. Schmidt Encounter with a masterpiece The history of the Adoration of the he Adoration of the Magi commission another painting Twas commissioned to of similar size and subject to Magi by Leonardo, commissioned for the Leonardo in 1481 by the Filippino Lippi who fulfilled Regular Canons of Saint Au- the commission in 1496. high altar of the church of San Donato a gustine for the high altar of The church and convent the church of San Donato a of San Donato a Scopeto, Ro- Scopeto. The extraordinary novelty of its Scopeto, once located on a manesque in origin, was de- hill outside Porta Romana in stroyed prior to the siege of complex composition Florence. The commission Florence in 1529 like other was suddenly interrupted convents located outside the when Leonardo left for Mi- city walls to assure that the lan, a departure determined sieging armies could not use either by his own will or one them as shelters. This fact un- prompted by Lorenzo de’ fortunately leaves us with no Medici. In any case, the large architectural points of refer- painting was left unfinished ence to support a hypotheti- and it is almost certain that cal reconstruction of the con- it was never placed on the al- figuration of the painting by tar for which it was intended. Leonardo or its frame. The Augustinian monks of Records do instead give ac- San Donato in Scopeto waited count of the painting’s various several years for the artist to locations during the decades complete the work until in the and centuries to follow, begin- early 1490s they decided to ning with Vasari’s mention of the work in his biography of Leonardo in the second edi- Leonardo da Vinci, Adoration of the Magi tion of his Lives (1568). There (Gallery of Statues and Paintings of the he states – using a past tense Uffizi). The painting prior to restoration verb – that the Adoration of carried out by the Opificio delle Pietre the Magi “was in the home of Dure with the support of the Amici degli Amerigo Benci opposite the Uffizi. loggia of the Peruzzi”; and 2 IL GIORNALE degli UFFIZI “The Magic Cosmos of Leonardo. The Adoration of the Magi Restored” Gallery of Statues and Paintings of the Uffizi from March 28 to September 24, 2017 curators: Eike Schmidt, Marco Ciatti, Cecilia Frosinini. Natali who traces the signifi- ing a temple on the left. In cance not only to the writings this astonishing painting, of Saint Augustine, but also Leonardo appears to fore- to the prophecies of Isaiah shadow many figurative inven- who possibly can be identi- tions adopted in the years to fied with the pensive figure come: the group of the Ma- seen in the extreme left-hand donna and Child seated on a foreground.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Best of Renaissance Florence April 28 – May 6, 2019
    Alumni Travel Study From Galleries to Gardens The Best of Renaissance Florence April 28 – May 6, 2019 Featuring Study Leader Molly Bourne ’87, Professor of Art History and Coordinator of the Master’s Program in Renaissance Art at Syracuse University Florence Immerse yourself in the tranquil, elegant beauty of Italy’s grandest gardens and noble estates. Discover the beauty, drama, and creativity of the Italian Renaissance by spending a week in Florence—the “Cradle of the Renaissance”—with fellow Williams College alumni. In addition to a dazzling array of special openings, invitations into private homes, and splendid feasts of Tuscan cuisine, this tour offers the academic leadership of Molly Bourne (Williams Class of ’87), art history professor at Syracuse University Florence. From the early innovations of Giotto, Brunelleschi, and Masaccio to the grand accomplishments of Michelangelo, our itinerary will uncover the very best of Florence’s Renaissance treasury. Outside of Florence, excursions to delightful Siena and along the Piero della Francesca trail will provide perspectives on the rise of the Renaissance in Tuscany. But the program is not merely an art seminar—interactions with local food and wine experts, lunches inside beautiful private homes, meanders through stunning private gardens, and meetings with traditional artisans will complement this unforgettable journey. Study Leader MOLLY BOURNE (BA Williams ’87; PhD Harvard ’98) has taught art history at Syracuse University Florence since 1999, where she is also Coordinator of their Master’s Program in Renaissance Art History. A member of the Accademia Nazionale Virgiliana, she has also served as project researcher for the Medici Archive Project and held a fellowship at Villa I Tatti, the Harvard Center for Renaissance Studies.
    [Show full text]
  • TREASURES from the Uffizi Gallery Overview
    Offering of the Angels: Treasures from the Uffizi Gallery Overview Oering of the Angels: Treasures from the Uzi Gallery is a traveling exhibition from the famed Uzi Gallery in Florence, Italy. The exhibition features 45 works – two large tapestries and 43 paintings by Renaissance artists from the 15th to 17th century. This exhibition, along with related programming, will be presented at the James A. Michener Art Museum from April 21, 2012 – August 10, 2012. Curated by Antonio Natali, the Director of the Uzi, the exhibition examines classical sacred art as the visual representation of the path to redemption and the life of Christ, and also presents the broad diversity and stylistic evolution of art from Northern Italy during the seminal Renaissance period. The exhibition includes works by masters such as Botticelli, Tintoretto, Parmigianino, Lorenzo Monaco, Guercino, Cristofano and Alessandro Allori. A recently restored painting attributed to Tiziano has just been added to the exhibition, and will be on public display for the rst time in recent history. This tour is the only time these masterworks will be seen in the United States, and the Michener Art Museum is the only venue to host this exhibition in the Northeast region. www.MichenerArtMuseum.org A Night at the Uffizi A night of firsts To celebrate the première of the exhibition Oering of the Angels: Treasures from the Uzi Gallery, the James A. Michener Art Museum is hosting a black tie gala event, A Night at the Uzi. Oering of the Angels is the rst American tour of these works by Italian Renaissance masters and features 15th-17th century paintings and tapestries from the renowned Uzi Gallery in Florence, Italy.
    [Show full text]
  • Fatal Colours—PKY—234X153mm FATALCPR01
    ORION FATALC Unit $$PR Page 1 Fatal Colours—PKY—234x153mm FATALCPR01 FATAL COLOURS Input Data Services Ltd 01-17-2011 10:38:36 ORION FATALC Unit $$PR Page 2 Fatal Colours—PKY—234x153mm FATALCPR01 Input Data Services Ltd 01-17-2011 10:38:36 ORION FATALC Unit $$PR Page 3 Fatal Colours—PKY—234x153mm FATALCPR01 FATAL COLOURS the battle of towton 1461 George Goodwin Weidenfeld & Nicolson london Input Data Services Ltd 01-17-2011 10:38:36 ORION FATALC Unit $$PR Page 4 Fatal Colours—PKY—234x153mm FATALCPR01 First published in Great Britain in 2011 by Weidenfeld & Nicolson 13579108642 Text © George Goodwin 2011 Maps © David Hoxley 2011 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher. The right of George Goodwin to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act of 1988. A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. hb isbn-13 978 0 297 86071 6 Typset by Input Data Services Ltd, Bridgwater Somerset Printed and bound in the UK by CPI Mackays, Chatham, Kent The Orion Publishing Group’s policy is to use papers that are natural, renewable and recyclable products and made from wood grown in sustainable forests. The logging and manufacturing processes are expected to conform to the environmental regulations of the country of origin.
    [Show full text]
  • Notes on a Florence Visit
    Notes on A Florence Visit For Great Views of Florence without the Steps Frescoes of the Last Supper in Florence Roof of the Rinascente Department store Roof of the Ospedele degli Innocenti Upper floor of the Orsanmichele Church Recectory at San Marco Piazzale Michelangelo – take the #12 or #13 bus Refectory at St. Maria del Carmine Roof of the Oblate Library – 2 blocks from Duomo Refectory of Ognissante Church Take the bus from San Marco up to Fisole Refectory at Santa Maria Novella -painted by a nun- Sister Trattoria Le Mossacce Nelli Refectory at Santa Croce Videos to View Refectory of San Salvi Refectory at Sant’Apollonia Cenacolo of Fuligno The Medicis – on Netflick Rick Ruggiero on Road Scholar’s Virtual Lecture Medici: Godfathers of the Renaissance -PBS YouTube – 3 hour walking tour of Florence Room With a View Secrets of Florence (on Hoopla) Books To Read Brunelleschi’s Dome – Ross King The Lives of the Artists – Vasari The Stones of Florence – McCarthy Birth of Venus – Dunant Looking at Painting in Florence – Paterson The Light in the Piazza - Spencer Places Not to Miss Mercato Centrale –Market, Food Court, Cooking School Grom Gelato Badia Fiorentina - for Night Vespers Duomo – inside without line – side entrance for English Mass on Sat. PM or Sun. Amici Card at the Uffizi for immediate entry Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella Ognissante Church – tomb of Botticello Giotto Crucifix Pazzi Chapel next to Santa Croce Leather School and Factory behind Santa Croce Vasari Corridor – expected to be opened this year Galileo Museum San Miniato Church Santissima Annunziata Church – painting of Mary completed by an angel Museum of Precious Stones Riccardo- Medici Palace – Chapel of the Magi San Maria dell Carmine Church -Brabcacci Chapel Santo Spirito Church – Michelangelo’s Crucifix .
    [Show full text]
  • 1 Santo Spirito in Florence: Brunelleschi, the Opera, the Quartiere and the Cantiere Submitted by Rocky Ruggiero to the Universi
    Santo Spirito in Florence: Brunelleschi, the Opera, the Quartiere and the Cantiere Submitted by Rocky Ruggiero to the University of Exeter as a thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Art History and Visual Culture In March 2017. This thesis is available for Library use on the understanding that it is copyright material and that no quotation from the thesis may be published without proper acknowledgement. I certify that all material in this thesis which is not my own work has been identified and that no material has previously been submitted and approved for the award of a degree by this or any other University. (Signature)…………………………………………………………………………….. 1 Abstract The church of Santo Spirito in Florence is universally accepted as one of the architectural works of Filippo Brunelleschi (1377-1446). It is nevertheless surprising that contrary to such buildings as San Lorenzo or the Old Sacristy, the church has received relatively little scholarly attention. Most scholarship continues to rely upon the testimony of Brunelleschi’s earliest biographer, Antonio di Tuccio Manetti, to establish an administrative and artistic initiation date for the project in the middle of Brunelleschi’s career, around 1428. Through an exhaustive analysis of the biographer’s account, and subsequent comparison to the extant documentary evidence from the period, I have been able to establish that construction actually began at a considerably later date, around 1440. It is specifically during the two and half decades after Brunelleschi’s death in 1446 that very little is known about the proceedings of the project. A largely unpublished archival source which records the machinations of the Opera (works committee) of Santo Spirito from 1446-1461, sheds considerable light on the progress of construction during this period, as well as on the role of the Opera in the realization of the church.
    [Show full text]
  • A Private Chapel As Burial Space: Filippo Strozzi with Filippino Lippi and Benedetto Da Maiano in Santa Maria Novella, Florence
    A PRIVATE CHAPEL AS BURIAL SPACE 215 A Private Chapel as Burial Space: Filippo Strozzi with Filippino Lippi and Benedetto da Maiano in Santa Maria Novella, Florence ITO Takuma Keywords: Renaissance art, Medieval art, private chapels, funeral monu- ments, fresco painting Introduction Chapel decoration as burial space in Renaissance Florence had two dis- tinct tendencies, apparently opposing but not necessarily mutually exclu- sive. On the one hand, there was a growing demand for spatial coherence in religious buildings, especially in churches newly built in the Renaissance style, such as San Lorenzo and Santo Spirito. Chapels in these churches indeed generally entailed commissioning a few choice objects, such as an altarpiece or a painted window, and the funeral monuments were rather modest, comprised in many cases only of simple tomb-slabs. Chapels with a greater degree of spatial independence, on the other hand, permitted the patrons to develop highly personalized burial settings. One such example is the Sagrestia Vecchia in San Lorenzo, where Cosimo de’ Medici had a sarcophagus installed under the table at the center of the space as a funeral monument for his parents. In traditional gothic churches, too, family cha- . See for example E. Capretti, “La cappella e l’altare: evoluzione di un rapporto,” in C. Acidini Luchinat ed., La chiesa e il convento di Santo Spirito a Firenze (Florence, 996), 229-238. Research Fellow of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science 216 pels, especially those in transepts, were decorated with lesser regard for the cohesion and unity of the church structures, and often involved sumptuous funeral monuments.
    [Show full text]
  • Gender Dynamics in Renaissance Florence Mary D
    Early Modern Women: An Interdisciplinary Journal Vol. 11, No. 1 • Fall 2016 The Cloister and the Square: Gender Dynamics in Renaissance Florence Mary D. Garrard eminist scholars have effectively unmasked the misogynist messages of the Fstatues that occupy and patrol the main public square of Florence — most conspicuously, Benvenuto Cellini’s Perseus Slaying Medusa and Giovanni da Bologna’s Rape of a Sabine Woman (Figs. 1, 20). In groundbreaking essays on those statues, Yael Even and Margaret Carroll brought to light the absolutist patriarchal control that was expressed through images of sexual violence.1 The purpose of art, in this way of thinking, was to bolster power by demonstrating its effect. Discussing Cellini’s brutal representation of the decapitated Medusa, Even connected the artist’s gratuitous inclusion of the dismembered body with his psychosexual concerns, and the display of Medusa’s gory head with a terrifying female archetype that is now seen to be under masculine control. Indeed, Cellini’s need to restage the patriarchal execution might be said to express a subconscious response to threat from the female, which he met through psychological reversal, by converting the dangerous female chimera into a feminine victim.2 1 Yael Even, “The Loggia dei Lanzi: A Showcase of Female Subjugation,” and Margaret D. Carroll, “The Erotics of Absolutism: Rubens and the Mystification of Sexual Violence,” The Expanding Discourse: Feminism and Art History, ed. Norma Broude and Mary D. Garrard (New York: HarperCollins, 1992), 127–37, 139–59; and Geraldine A. Johnson, “Idol or Ideal? The Power and Potency of Female Public Sculpture,” Picturing Women in Renaissance and Baroque Italy, ed.
    [Show full text]
  • Repositioning Plautilla Nelli's Lamentation
    Conversations: An Online Journal of the Center for the Study of Material and Visual Cultures of Religion (mavcor.yale.edu) Repositioning Plautilla Nelli’s Lamentation Mary D. Garrard Fig. 1 Plautilla Nelli, Lamentation, 1550 My favorite underrated work of art is the Lamentation by Suor Plautilla Nelli (1523- 1588), the first woman artist in Renaissance Florence with an oeuvre to go with her name. This large altar painting (Fig. 1) was created for the Dominican convent of Saint Catherine of Siena, where it stood, nearly ten feet high, on a prominent altar in the convent’s public church. Located in Piazza San Marco, Santa Caterina was founded by a female disciple of Savonarola and became a major center of his spiritual legacy. Today the painting is in the museum of San Marco, the adjacent monastery from which the reformist friar preached.1 At age fourteen, Pulsinella Nelli took the veil as Plautilla and entered the convent she would serve three times as prioress. She was trained in drawing and painting, probably Conversations: An Online Journal of the Center for the Study of Material and Visual Cultures of Religion (mavcor.yale.edu) by nuns. By age thirty-five, she had created several large paintings for Santa Caterina, and was receiving income from paintings sold “outside,” perhaps to the Florentine noblemen and women who, Vasari said, owned many of her works.2 Suor Plautilla did not have access to studio training available to male artists, but since Santa Caterina was not cloistered until 1575, she was free to learn from the exceptional wealth of art visible in Florence.
    [Show full text]
  • Insider's Florence
    Insider’s Florence Explore the birthplace of the Renaissance November 8 - 15, 2014 Book Today! SmithsonianJourneys.org • 1.877.338.8687 Insider’s Florence Overview Florence is a wealth of Renaissance treasures, yet many of its riches elude all but the most experienced travelers. During this exclusive tour, Smithsonian Journey’s Resident Expert and popular art historian Elaine Ruffolo takes you behind the scenes to discover the city’s hidden gems. You’ll enjoy special access at some of Florence’s most celebrated sites during private after-hours visits and gain insight from local experts, curators, and museum directors. Learn about restoration issues with a conservator in the Uffizi’s lab, take tea with a principessa after a private viewing of her art collection, and meet with artisans practicing their ages-old art forms. During a special day in the countryside, you’ll also go behind the scenes to explore lovely villas and gardens once owned by members of the Medici family. Plus, enjoy time on your own to explore the city’s remarkable piazzas, restaurants, and other museums. This distinctive journey offers first time and returning visitors a chance to delve deeper into the arts and treasures of Florence. Smithsonian Expert Elaine Ruffolo November 8 - 15, 2014 For popular leader Elaine Ruffolo, Florence offers boundless opportunities to study and share the finest artistic achievements of the Renaissance. Having made her home in this splendid city, she serves as Resident Director for the Smithsonian’s popular Florence programs. She holds a Master’s degree in art history from Syracuse University and serves as a lecturer and field trip coordinator for the Syracuse University’s program in Italy.
    [Show full text]
  • Mission Statement History
    Mission Statement The Friends of the Uffizi Gallery was established in 2006 as the United States "sister" organization to the Amici degli Uffizi, in Florence, Italy. In response to the May, 1993 terrorist bombing that damaged several art works and portions of the Uffizi Gallery, Amici was founded in Florence by a group of concerned citizens, including Contessa Maria Vittoria Colonna Rimbotti, the current President of both organizations. A U.S. based tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization, the Friends of the BOARD OF DIRECTORS Uffizi Gallery, was created to support the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy, by President raising awareness of the Uffizi and its cultural treasures and by providing resources Contessa Maria Vittoria Colonna Rimbotti for acquisition, preservation, restoration and education. Vice-President Emanuele Guerra History Director of Operations Mary Jo Zingale The Amici degli Uffizi, established in 1993 after the Uffizi bombing, has ever since Treasurer supported the Uffizi Gallery in Florence by facilitating acquisitions, supporting Bruce Crawford restorations and organizing special exhibitions. In tandem with the Amici degli Secretary Uffizi, the Friends of the Uffizi Gallery, founded in 2006 raises funds to support Madeleine Parker these activities through the efforts of its dedicated members and patrons. Over 30 Honorary Members restoration projects, designated priorities by Antonio Natali, Director of the Uffizi Antonio Natali Gallery, have been completed through 2012. Diann G. Scaravilli EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR The Uffizi Gallery, originally showcasing the Medici family collection of ancient Lisa Marie Browne sculptures, is considered one of the world's first public museums. It receives over ADVISORY BOARD 1.6 million visitors per year.
    [Show full text]
  • Florence Celebrates the Uffizi the Medici Were Acquisitive, but the Last of the Line Was Generous
    ArtNews December 1982 Florence Celebrates The Uffizi The Medici were acquisitive, but the last of the line was generous. She left all the family’s treasures to the people of Florence. by Milton Gendel Whenever I vist The Uffizi Gallery, I start with Raphael’s classic portrait of Leo X and Two Cardinals, in which the artist shows his patron and friend as a princely pontiff at home in his study. The pope’s esthetic interests are indicated by the finely worked silver bell on the red-draped table and an illuminated Bible, which he has been studying with the aid of a gold-mounted lens. The brass ball finial on his chair alludes to the Medici armorial device, for Leo X was Giovanni de’ Medici, the second son of Lorenzo the Magnificent. Clutching the chair, as if affirming the reality of nepotism, is the pope’s cousin, Cardinal Luigi de’ Rossi. On the left is Cardinal Giulio de’ Medici, another cousin, whose look of reverie might be read, I imagine, as foreseeing his own disastrous reign as Pope Clement VII. That was five years in the future, of course, and could not have been anticipated by Raphael, but Leo had also made cardinals of his three nephews, so it wasn’t unlikely that another member of the family would be elected to the papacy. In fact, between 1513 and 1605, four Medici popes reigned in Rome. Leo X was a true Renaissance prince, whose civility and love of the arts impressed everyone - in the tradition of his father, Lorenzo the Magnificent.
    [Show full text]
  • How a Female-Led Art Restoration Movement in Florence Is Reshaping the Canon
    AiA Art News-service How a Female-Led Art Restoration Movement in Florence Is Reshaping the Canon The organization Advancing Women Artists is at the fore of finding forgotten female Masters like Plautilla Nelli. Kate Brown, July 12, 2018 Nicoletta Fontani and Elizabeth Wicks restore masterwork by Violante Siries. Courtesy Advancing Women Artists. Sometimes, all it takes is for someone to ask the right question. That is exactly what Jane Fortune did on a visit to Florence 12 years ago. While touring the Renaissance city’s exquisite museums and fresco -covered churches, the American philanthropist began to wonder, “Where are the women?” Her search for an answer set Fortune on a passionate quest to restore the lost legacies and artworks of Florence’s forgotten female artists, digging into museums’ archives and dusty deposits with her organization, Advancing Women Artists (AWA). One exemplary Renaissance work that AWA has revived is The Crucifixion, which is getting its final touches over the summer before the restored painting will finally be unveiled at Italy’s San Salvi Museum this October. It’s one of many works by Sister Plautilla Nelli, a 15th-century self-taught artist and nun who was hugely famous in her time, but whom art history has forgotten. “And if they don’t know [Nelli], how many other female painters do they not know?” Fortune asks. Since the foundation launched more than 10 years ago, AWA has restored some 53 artworks. By September, that number will jump to 58. The nonprofit has become the go-to for Florentine curators who want to research their own collections, which house many works by women (AWA has inventoried 2,000 so far) that have been unseen for centuries.
    [Show full text]