Fra Angelico, Christ Glorified in the Court of Heaven, about 1423-24. The National Gallery, London. I have just returned from my first visit to the glorious exhibition Fra Angelico in Florence. Spread across two venues – Palazzo Strozzi and San Marco – it is the most comprehensive collection of works by this Dominican master thatContinue reading “257 – Unite the Kingdom (of Heaven)”
Category Archives: Resurrection
Bringing ‘The Resurrection’ back to life
Donatello, The Resurrection, c. 1460-65. San Lorenzo, Florence. On Monday 20 January at 6pm I am going to try and answer the question What is Mannerism?. I hope this will put Parmigianino’s masterpiece, which I discussed earlier in the week, into a broader artistic context. However, it’s been one of those weeks, and as thereContinue reading “Bringing ‘The Resurrection’ back to life”
224 – Two sides of the same…
Michelangelo, Tityus, 1532. Royal Collection Trust/HM King Charles III. RCIN 912771 r. & v. The phrase is, of course, ‘two sides of the same coin’, but today I’m looking at a piece of paper. However, ‘two sides of the same piece of paper’ isn’t a figure of speech… The sheet in question is included inContinue reading “224 – Two sides of the same…”
168 – Michelangelo: Leaning back, looking forward
Michelangelo, Jonah, c. 1511-12. Sistine Chapel, Vatican City. I’m just about to start a new series of lectures, Almost All of Michelangelo, and we kick off this Monday 5 September with The Paintings. Unlike my previous online talks, these will be two hour sessions, and will last from 5.30-7.30pm – with a ten minute gapContinue reading “168 – Michelangelo: Leaning back, looking forward”
162 – Betrayal Redeemed
Cornelia Parker, Thirty Pieces of Silver, 1988. Tate. Given that my current series of talks is called Looking in Different Ways, Cornelia Parker, about whom I will be talking this Monday, 18 July at 6pm, is a perfect choice. She sees the world in such a completely different way to most artists, and, with allContinue reading “162 – Betrayal Redeemed”
Easter!
Andrea Bonaiuti, The Resurrection, 1365-8. The Spanish Chapel, Santa Maria Novella, Florence. Happy Easter! Yesterday I referred to last year’s blog on The Devils in Andrea Bonaiuti’s Harrowing of Hell – and then I thought I ought to read it through, just in case there were any embarrassing typos. I’m glad to say that thereContinue reading “Easter!”
112 …and so, ‘Farewell’…
Giotto, The Scrovegni Chapel, c. 1305, Padua. This is it, the very last ‘Scrovegni Saturday’. When I started out on this strand I had no idea what was coming, but I feel I understand Giotto’s decoration far better than I did before – and inevitably I also have far more questions about it than previously!Continue reading “112 …and so, ‘Farewell’…”
Day 30 – The Supper at Emmaus
Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, The Supper at Emmaus, 1601, National Gallery, London. People often ask me what would be the best book to read as an introduction to renaissance art, and my answer is almost invariably ‘the Bible’. And its value is not restricted to the Renaissance. Most ‘Old Master’ painting was produced in a profoundlyContinue reading “Day 30 – The Supper at Emmaus”
Day 25 – The Resurrection
Day 25 – Donatello, The Resurrection, c. 1460-65, San Lorenzo, Florence. Happy Easter! And to celebrate: my favourite image of ‘The Resurrection’. Why this one, of all the possible examples? Quite simply, because it’s not easy: this is a hard won victory. And because it breaks all the rules. Most versions of the Resurrection make itContinue reading “Day 25 – The Resurrection”
Day 24 – The Devils
Day 23 – Andrea Bonauiti, The Devils, from The Harrowing of Hell, 1365-68, The Spanish Chapel, Santa Maria Novella, Florence. It’s Easter Saturday – a day, it might seem, like any other, trapped between two extraordinary days – Good Friday, and Easter Sunday – and we wait, expectant and patient, while nothing happens. Or so itContinue reading “Day 24 – The Devils”
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