The Gates of Paradise by Lorenzo Ghiberti

This is an electrotyped cast at London’s V&A of the second Baptistry door commissioned from Lorenzo Ghiberti for the Baptistry of the Florence Cathedral.

Lorenzo had already decorated the North doors of the city’s Baptistery. They were a sensation and lead to the second commission. 

These were dubbed the “Gates of Paradise” by Michelangelo - i.e. they were good enough to adorn the gates of paradise itself! 

They are mind-blowing.

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Lorenzo Ghiberti’s Gates of Paradise are made of gilded bronze.

The doors consists of ten large panels depicting scenes from the Old Testament.

The panels are surrounded by an ornate frame of statuettes and busts.

Yes, that's a door!

Have doors ever been so terrifying and soul-stirring?

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Busts

 

The second is supposed to be Lorenzo Ghiberti’s self-portrait.

Eyebrows raised? 

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Panels

 

The biblical story of Jacob and Esau, and then Life of Joseph, the “Harvest of Wheat”.

 

Moses receiving the tables of the law, then the fall of Jericho.

 

David and Goliath, and then the meeting of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba.

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And me .... 😎

Lorenzo Ghiberti

Lorenzo Ghiberti and Filippo Brunelleschi are the two most important sparks of the Florentine Renaissance.

Ghiberti was the bridge between the Gothic and the Renaissance. His sculptural technique involved a new level of intricacy and detailed with a level of realism and emotional depth that had not been seen before.

I hope you'll agree they are quite moving. I can only imagine how powerful they were in the 15th century. It also explains why they became so popular. 

Below are two beautiful sculptures that I want to share from 2 different museums. 😁

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Madonna and Child by the Circle of Lorenzo Ghiberti

A beautiful sculpture & important to art history.

E.g. from V&A London.

This relief is from the Ashmolean at Oxford. 

It depicts the Madonna and Child.

It’s one of a number of 30-40 surviving variants based on the characteristics of the Florentine bronze sculptor Lorenzo Ghiberti. 

He is one of the forefathers of the Italian renaissance - renowned for his bronze doors for the Florence Baptistery. 

The mother’s serene face, the adoring arrangement of mother-and-son, and the baby Christ’s pose (by her shoulder) are characteristic of Ghiberti’s style. See e.g.

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Seated Virgin and Child by the Circle of Lorenzo Ghiberti and Donatello (~ 1415)

A loving & graceful embrace, and yet with a pensive sadness.

The mother seems slightly lost in her melancholy, as her son wraps his arms around her. Her fingers seem to reach around to lift him closer to her. 😔

This terracotta from the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

No wonder Ghiberti was so influential.

According to the museum, it is close to the style of Ghiberti’s workshop, where the young Donatello worked in.