Italian Renaissance 1400 - 1500

Botticelli and Masaccio Botticelli, Adoration of the Magi, 1475, tempera on wood

Figure 21-27 SANDRO BOTTICELLI, Birth of Venus, ca. 1484 1486. Tempera on degli Uffizi, Florence. 6

Capitoline Venus vs. Botticelli’s Venus Zephyrus & Nymph detail Flora detail

Botticelli , La Primavera (Allegory of Spring), 1482, Tempera on wood

Mercury detail Winged Shoes of Mercury detail Snake- entwined Rod of Mercury detail Three Graces Hellenistic & Botticelli’s Three Graces

Flora, Choris, Zephyr detail Chloris detail Flora detail Flora detail Tuscan flora detail Importance of Masaccio to Early Renaissance

• Tribute Money – brings together innovations in 15th century painting --- trailblazer whose work influenced other artists – Linear perspective – Aerial perspective – Classical body types (blend of realism with idealizing the human form) – Chiaroscuro to create a more realistic picture, single light source from the right, modeling the human anatomy to give figures weight – Balanced, symmetrical composition

26 •Notice that Adam’s and Eve’s body types and poses are derivative of ancient Roman statuary. •Compare Masaccio’s Adam to Jan van Eyck’s Adam from the Ghent Altarpiece. •Eve has the “modest Venus” pose.

Figure 21-19 MASACCIO, Expulsion of Adam and Eve from Eden, Brancacci Chapel, Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence, Italy, ca. 1424

27 MASACCIO: Expulsion of Adam and Eve from Eden MASACCIO: THE EXPULSION OF ADAM & EVE [BEFORE RESTORATION]

Figure 21-18 MASACCIO, Tribute Money, Brancacci Chapel, Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence, Italy, ca. 1427. Fresco, 8’ 4 1/8” x 19’ 7

1/8”. 31

Tax Collector detail Christ telling Saint Peter where the money is Saint Peter retrieving the money Saint Peter paying the money COMPARE: EVOLUTION OF CHIAROSCURO

Notice symmetry created by the pyramidal composition. How many triangles can you count?

Notice the significance of the donors (Renaissance interest in the individual), classical architecture, and the memento mori at the base.

Figure 21-20 MASACCIO, Holy Trinity, Santa Maria Novella, Florence, Italy, ca. 1424

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Mary detail Saint John detail 43