I really love the Philadelphia Museum of Art, especially the monastery-like room in which I saw this painting displayed. I also really like
getting the side-eye from this guy, because this artist is one of my favorites
in the Italian Renaissance. The reason he is
one of my favorites is because he was influenced by northern European painting (shut up, I know I’m
Swiss, what does that have to do with it?). While most art historians consider the Italian
Renaissance the epitome of culture, and the major influence on art all over Western
Europe, I feel we should look at Northern influences on Italian Renaissance
art.
Until the late 1400s in Italy, tempera
was the preferred painting medium. Oil painting
had become the preferred painting medium in northern Europe—specifically Flanders—in the early 1400s. Also, during that
time, the three-quarters portrait became popular in northern Europe, as opposed
to the profile portrait that remained popular in Italy through the middle of
the 1400s. By the late 1400s, the three-quarters view portrait was universally
popular in Italy. What’s interesting about this change in format in the
portrait eloquently expresses the Renaissance belief in the uniqueness of every
human being.
This sitter engages the viewer with his eyes in almost a
defiant manner. Such self-assurance is typical of the Renaissance revival of
antique learning, such as the teachings of the Greek philosopher Plato (425—347
bce) who advised people to “know
yourself.” By many art historians, Antonello da
Messina is considered one of the finest Italian Renaissance portraitists who
achieved a psychological depth in his portraits. This portrait originally had a
dark (probably black, cleaned off?) background that helped focus attention of
the sitter’s face.
Antonello was born in Messina and died in Venice. He worked
in Sicily for several years and then went to Naples, where it is thought that
he saw an oil painting by the Flemish master Jan
van Eyck (ca. 1390–1441). It is also possible that he saw the work of
another Flemish master, Rogier van der Weyden
(died 1464), who visited Italy around 1450. That Antonello was influenced by
the Flemish oil technique is evident in his work, and he may have transmitted
the medium to other artists, especially those in Venice where he moved in 1473.
Venetian artists were among the first Italian artists to adopt the oil medium
in their painting.
Typical portraiture of the period in Italy:
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Paolo Uccello, attributed to (1397–1475), A Young Lady of Fashion, 1460s. © Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston. (GM-46) |
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Scheggia (Giovanni di Ser Giovanni di Mone Cassai) (1406–1486), Portrait of a Lady, ca. 1440–1450. © Philadelphia Museum of Art. (PMA-3257). |
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Unknown Artist, Profile Portrait of a Boy, from northern Italy, ca. 1460/1470. © National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC. (NGA-P0955) |
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Botticelli (Alessandro di Mariano Filipepi) (1444/1445–1510), Giuliano de’ Medici, ca. 1478. © National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC. (NGA-P0056) |
Activity: Create
a self-portrait or portrait of a friend in a Renaissance setting or costume.
Start painting with light colors then work toward darker shades to produce
shadows. Create highlights with tints (colors mixed with white). Try to reflect
a specific period by the costume, objects, or background. Use a fine-tipped
brush for details. Compare the portrait to Renaissance portraits from museums
and how the time difference affects the result.
Correlations to Davis
programs: Explorations in Art Grade 1: 2.8; Explorations in Art Grade 2:
2.8; Explorations in Art Grade 3:.1, 1.2; Explorations in Art Grade 4: 2.7; Explorations
in Art Grade 5: 1.2; Explorations in Art Grade 6: 1.1, 1.2; A Personal Journey:
3.2, 6.4; A Global Pursuit: 4.4; Exploring Visual Design: 7, 10; The Visual
Experience: 15.8; Discovering Art History: 9.1
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