Do art galleries devalue the art in their tacky gift shops? ✎

This is the from the blockbuster Van Gogh exhibition last year at the National Gallery:

 

I felt a bit embarrassed. 😔

I think Van Gogh would be shocked by what’s been done to his work.

His sunflowers motif were a lifelong, almost spiritual, expression of “gratitude” of being face to face with nature. E.g. see Gauguin’s depiction of Van Gogh’s magnum opus. The power of his art comes from his energy and excitement; and Van Gogh was a troubled soul.

Quite a lot of his paintings were done in an asylum, and it feels v. disrespectful to slap his face and works on tacky bags, jewelry, kitchen towels, tea matts, and everything else etc. 

Van Gogh always wanted “validation” (esp. among the respectable Paris salons), but he certainly had a respect for art.

I get museums are strapped for cash, but is it too much?  🤔

Portrait of Pope Julius II by Raphael (1511–1512) ✎

Captivating.

I’ve seen this portrait so many times, but I’ll never forget my initial shock when first encountering it.

It’s very interesting that Vasari (thirty years after the death of Raphael) wrote of this portrait “it was so lifelike and true it frightened everyone who saw it, as if it were the living man himself.”

For me, the painting has a disarming intimacy and sense of pathos which is executed with Raphael’s technical brilliance.

The artistic details are bewildering: the soft white ermine fur on the red-velvet mozzetta, camauro to match, subtle flesh tones and rings, crisp & starched white surplice etc. The dark green background hides an interesting backstory. 

Pope Julius II was a scary Pope. He had a horrible temper and lead armies into battle himself! And yet, he is depicted as a tired elderly man in a moment of some melancholic reflection. His downward gaze, dejected bearing, distant and worried eyes, the grip on his chair. It is down to his military defeat at the hands of the French.

The previous Pope was Pope Pius III and below (it seems) is his portrait:

Raphael’s portrait is thus revolutionary - very intimate with a three-quarter view turned away from us (in contemplation).

✲✲✲

More on YouTube from the National Gallery talk by Matthias Wivel:

A Lion Hunt by Peter Paul Rubens (1614-1615) ✎

This is a famous sketch from the National Gallery.

I am always blown away by his mastery of color and the fluidity of his brushstrokes.

This is a beautiful oil sketch which was formerly owned by Sir Robert Peel, former PM. Rubens created oil sketches as a preparatory study for the composition. Once it was approved, Rubens handed the sketch to his studio assistants. They would use it as an exact, scaled guide to transfer the complex, swirling mass of bodies onto a giant canvas before the final, full-color layers were applied by Rubens himself.

In this sketch, the hunters become hunted in a chaotic bloodbath. The terrifying muscular dynamism of the horses, lions and indeed humans is terrific. He has been revered for centuries, mostly for his raw muscular power combined with a delicate luminous beauty. He engineered theatrical experiences.

✲

Probably influenced by Leonardo da Vinci’s The Battle of Anghiari. Rubens not only studied it, but retouched it (having owned it):

The Manchester Madonna by Michelangelo (1497) ✎

I think the angels on the left side of the canvas (at Mary’s right side) who are softly reading from a scroll together are beautifully rendered. Their flowing, colourful robes and serene expressions really showcase Michelangelo’s incredible skill at rendering fabric and human form, even way back around 1497 when he was just starting his career.

The exposed breast is actually the symbolic motif of The Madonna Lactans.

This was from the National Gallery.

The Graham Children by William Hogarth (1742) ✎

A painting full of the joy of childhood.

This is William Hogarth’s most famous large-scale portrait at the National Gallery in London. He was the key figure of English Rococo.

It shows the four happy children of Daniel Graham, the apothecary (pharmacist) to King George II. So, obviously a family of considerable wealth and standing.

The painting’s sweetness is undercut be the sad fact that the youngest child, Thomas, in his go-cart, died before the painting was finished. 😞 He is dressed in a skirt - which was, apparently, common for that time. So, it is also a meditation on the fragility of life. He quite possibly steals the show.

I have always loved the detail of the cat peering greedily at the caged bird - it has obvious connotations apropos the ever-present threat of death (i.e. cat) which looms over the fragile & innocent soul (goldfinch - also a significant & recurring allegory/symbol in art history).

✲✲✲

In researching this painting, I was struck by an essay by Diana Francocci about Hogarth’s efforts to improve the lot of impoverished children in 18th century Bloomsbury:

Hogarth’s marriage was childless and yet he had a great affinity with children from all walks of life and this was clearly shown not only in the way he depicted children in paintings and engravings, but also in his position as a Governor of the foundling hospital. He played a considerable part in setting up this institution to take in abandoned children from the streets of London and the surrounding countryside. Coram and his helpers were besieged when the doors opened in March 1741, becoming full in a matter of a mere 4 hours. Hogarth was forced to plead with mothers not to abandon their offspring in the streets to an almost certain death.

This must have had a huge effect on his work as an artist and although he painted beautiful and sensitive paintings of children such as the one discussed above and for which he received payment, much of his work was inspired by the underclasses of the London streets. It has to be realised that the mortality of rate of children during this period was high. There was an enormous disparity between the children if the rich and the poor. Children as young as four or five were expected to help earn the daily bread, by such work as stone picking, bird scaring and berry picking in the countryside. Of course with the Industrial Revolution they had to take on much less healthy work in the factories.

A Poulterer’s Shop by Gerrit Dou (1670) ✎

It’s hard not to love these little Dutch so-called “niche paintings” (an interior seen through a window).

This particular little painting is one of Gerrit Dou’s masterpieces at the NG.

He was a student in Rembrandt’s studio and obviously perfected his skills there (esp. chiaroscuro).

It’s a wonderful idealised snapshot of everyday Dutch life from centuries ago. A young lady at the entrance of a poulterer’s shop, negotiating with the shopkeeper. The lady gestures towards a hare being held up, as duck and other game birds sit on the windowsill.

Incredible skill in depicting textures and the way light falls on different surfaces.

✲✲✲

 

Leader of the fijnschilder movement, Dou captures different textures with meticulous detail and precision. Such as the softness of the birds’ feathers, the smooth, cold stone of the window, peacock’s beautiful fibrous feathers fibers. 

Also, why did Dou depict children playing with a goat as a carved decorative detail on the stone’s bas-relief? Why include that detail - narrative? symbolism? Perhaps a commentary on the relationship between humans and animals? Perhaps the usual erotic subtext of the Dutch paintings? 

The Small Dort by Aelbert Cuyp (1650-2) ✎

This painting by Aelbert Cuyp is a twin of The Large Dort & also in the National Gallery’s collection.

As with my post on The Large Dort, we see the quintessentials of the Dutch Baroque painter - pastoral landscapes, animals, and a view of Dordrecht. 

The National Gallery though argues that there are some differences which suggest this particular painting depicts the end of the day:

The mood is more soporific than in the larger version, however. The sky seems slightly less luminous, the sun is lower and more of the painting is in shadow. Three of the cows seem to be on the verge of sleep, while the herdsman and the dog have already dropped off. The day’s labour, it seems, is over. But a similar sense of ease and contentment prevails. And Cuyp has used the same subtle sequence of pictorial planes to knit together the composition, from the dark foreground of weeds and brambles to the light-dappled cows, the shadowy cottages and windmills, then Dordrecht itself, bathed in the evening light.

For me, I prefer The Large Dort. 👌

The Large Dort by Aelbert Cuyp (1691) ✎

A beautiful masterpiece by Aelbert Cuyp.

Aelbert Cuyp was part of the Dutch Golden Age and painted these magnificent arcadian landscapes, often with dignified and heroic-looking cattle and cows.

His paintings are important to art history because - as with the Dutch Golden Age more generally - they laid the stylistic foundations which would be v. influential to the British landscape artists of the 18th and 19th-century, and romanticism.

He was also influenced by the “Dutch Italianate” painters. It was an art movement, inspired by their Italian travels, to infuse the painting with  a warm, soft and golden light - that you might see in the early misty morning hours.

I just think you could look at this painting for ages, and enjoy yourself.

✲✲✲

   

Cattle have so often in art history represented wealth, safety and plenty. The four cows and milkmaid celebrate the Dutch wellbeing and the peace associated with their land - especially after the eighty-years-war. So, the Dutch cow is a hero.

The way the light and shadow interacts with the cow is incredible. 

The “Dort” stands for his hometown Dordrecht, in the background.

A Musical Party in a Courtyard by Pieter de Hooch (1677) ✎

Love it.

Pieter de Hooch is the master of transforming those quiet domestic interior scenes of everyday Dutch life and transforming them into something so very beautiful. E.g., The Courtyard of a House in Delft by de Hooch - an ordinary scene of a girl holding the hand of her mother. This painting is after he left Delft and settled in Amsterdam. 

Here, one woman with a violin, a man seated (hat tilted) and smiling towards the third lady (stirring a glass of wine and v. stylishly adorned). But we’re drawn to the man standing silhouetted beneath the archway, looking out toward the street. Why is his back turned away from us?

The things great about his paintings:

1. Brilliant handling of light and space - main courtyard is flooded with soft twilight hues imbuing a calm atmosphere.
2. The doorkijkje device which has the effect of drawing the viewer into the painting, as if we’re “participating”.
3. The subject-matter is very appealing to me - and usually with some mystery to it - I enjoy the genre scenes of merriment (Jan Steen), or the low-lifes (Adriaen van Ostade) etc., but Hooch’s themes - a sense of order, virtue, safeness, cleanliness, with some lustful undertones, etc are things I like.
4. Attention to detail and textures - floor tiles, the vestments, and the opulent Turkish-style table cloth.

   

The sheer detail in the background beyond the archway is amazing - joints on exterior doors to a window, balustrade, stones on the gravel road, etc. What is especially great is how the brighter light “outside” is render in the paint.

:)

A Woman Drinking with Two Men by Pieter de Hooch (1658) ✎

Another one of de Hooch’s quiet domestic genre paintings from the National Gallery at London. See others here.

It has all the hallmarks of the Dutch master - the way light shines through the windows and into the domestic (creating shadows and a warmer pallete on surfaces apropos interaction with light - e.g. plaster on the walls), the high-contrasting tiled floors are masterfully rendered creating a terrific illusion of depth, and finally the Dutch sense of mystery.

For me, the lady in the black-and-red dress seems most enigmatic. Why stand with her back to us? Her fine clothing would suggest a wealthy middle-class lady (i.e. not a maid)? Why hold up a glass of wine like that? Is she mocking? What’s in her right hand? Why is the man opposite her playing with some makeshift musical instrument? Is she toying with them? 

According to the NG:

Scenes left open to different interpretations are characteristic of seventeenth-century Dutch painting, and depictions of musical gatherings were especially ambiguous – they can represent innocent entertainments or something more salacious. Here we can’t even be sure whether this is a musical gathering, let alone whether or not it is an innocent one.

This painting was owned by Sir Robert Peel - former Prime Minister and founder of the Conservative Party.

✲✲✲

    

Love the clothes, hats etc., and especially how they capture the light.

The painting above the fireplace is “the education of the Virgin Mary, kneeling before her mother, Saint Anne, and so represents the ultimate example of how to instil virtue in a young woman ... Seduction is still potentially in the air, however, hinted at by the intense attention of the men on the woman with the wine glass and by the presence of pipes, including one which has been broken and discarded on the chequerboard floor.”

The Wohl Room at the National Gallery ✎

I took this photo on Wednesday afternoon when I popped into the National Gallery for a little walk around.

I love the architectural spaces and visuals when it’s a bit quiet.

The Arnolfini Portrait by Jan van Eyck (1434) ✎

The Arnolfini Portrait is an incredibly famous painting.

A masterpiece of Early Netherlandish painting by Jan van Eyck at London’s National Gallery.

He was formerly credited (thanks to Vasari) as the “father of oil paintings”. But this is to overly simplify the story. Robert Campin was a contemporary of Jan van Eyck. He was the pioneer of the realistic style of oil painting in the Netherlands. According to wikipedia, they even met 1427: “On 18 October 1427, [van Eyck] travelled to Tournai to attend a banquet in his honour, also attended by Robert Campin and Rogier van der Weyden”.  That’s 7 years before this painting. Campin was the teacher of Rogier van der Weyden and Jacques Daret. They are known as “the Flemish Primitives” for their collective influence.

Robert Campin’s shift marked a departure from the stylised, flat, iconic, and decorative orientation of Late Gothic art in the North with detailed realism and the use of symbolism/perspective - which were taken up by Van Eyck and Van der Weyden (his peer) to their highest degree. The beauty and naturalism of Flemish & Northern portraiture was later admired by the early Italians - reaching its acme in Italy in the depth and realism of Raphael (e.g. see Saint Catherine of Alexandria by Raphael which I just blogged about). The early Italian Renaissance artists, while v. innovative, prioritised classical ideals of beauty and the harmony of the ideal form (e.g. Paolo Uccello, Fra Filippo Lippi etc.)

Jan van Eyck’s paintings are revolutionary for their true-to-life naturalism and convincing sense of perspective/space through meticulous rendering of the interior.

✲✲✲

For me, what’s incredible is his ability to convincingly imitate any surface texture - softer wood panel flooring, warm light infiltrating through a window, shadows, silky hairs of the small dog, the shining polished brass of the chandelier, the convex silvered glass of the mirror and the crystal rosary beads hanging on the wall.

The light is a palpable force - it casts shadows which flow behind and between the figures, and you can feel it in the tonal relationship - e.g. Arnolfini’s right shoulder lighter against the dark shutter. In a book, it had this to say: 

It is van Eyck’s ability to match the appearance of light-in-air which enables him to evoke space, not linear perspective, which he employs only approximately. The illusion is so potent that not even the elongated proportions and tiny heads of the figures dispel our belief in the reality of this scene.

Art historians are not absolutely sure on the identity of the sitters. We have good guesses, and much has been written about the marriage depicted. The dog symbolize their fidelity etc. The wife is supposed to be “fashionably round-bellied” as opposed to being pregnant (it was a fashion of its day: for a woman to appear pregnant, that’s why her dress has the folds). The gestures, the clogs, the mirror, the oranges, etc. Giselle Ohayon has written an interesting blog that covers the elements of this painting.

Overall, a beautiful portrait of a prosperous and God-fearing couple. 

 

Incredible hat was the fashion headwear of its day.

Convex mirror with the artist probably depicted.

Latin inscription on the back wall reads “Jan van Eyck was here/1434”

Perhaps his witness to the marriage, or his authorship?

This is the painting in its controversial new frame.

The “new frame” is nearly as old as the painting itself.

Saint Catherine of Alexandria by Raphael (1503) ✎

This is a very beautiful & important painting at the National Gallery.

Deep emotional intensity, dynamism, and a composition style that typifies the High Renaissance.

Saint Catherine of Alexandria was a legendary Christian saint and martyr. In Christianity, she is revered for her scholarly intellect, and unwavering faith. Said to have challenged the Roman Emperor in philosophical argument against Paganism. She was then imprisoned, tortured on a spiked torture device (“the breaking wheel”) which shattered, and then she was beheaded. (Scholars doubt that such a person actually existed as there is little of mention her before the 9AD).

Raphael captures the instant of divine grace as opposed to the horror and violence of her martyrdom - head raised, eyes gazing heavenwards towards radiant holy light, warmth landing on her, her hand on her heart.

This was painted during Raphael’s “Florentine period”. Based in Florence, he came under the influence of Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo and shifted away from the qualities of his Umbrian master, Perugino. This is clear from the contrapposto of her graceful & twisting pose (I’ve discussed this before vis-a-vis David by Raphael and Leda and the Swan by Leonardo da Vinci). We also have the classical pyramid composition, atmospheric depth, and delicate sfumato.

     

The peaceful landscape is a common motif, but still wonderful to look at.

Her face is very interesting - foreshortening, the shuttle sfumato blurring which avoids harsh lines in fleshy tones. She also has that Florentine High Renaissance idealisation of feminine beauty (which Da Vinci is most famous for) - smooth, soft and delicate complexion, subtle contours etc.

“Siena: The Rise of Painting 1300-1350” exhibition at the National Gallery - Part 1 ✎

Earlier this year, I went to the blockbuster Siena: The Rise of Painting, 1300-1350 at London’s National Gallery.

It was breathtaking. A truly once-in-a-lifetime experience.

It brings together paintings in both the National Gallery and The Met (as well as many other places) to narrate a great tale on the rise of painting in Siena over this period. Probably the best collection of mediaeval painting assembled in any one place in my lifetime. Not just the paintings but also the beautiful selection of textiles from the Middle East represented in some of the clothes depicted were fascinating. Such a nuanced and insightful perspective on art history through the historic period of global trade.

The best parts were the uniting of works and altarpieces which had not been seen together for hundreds of years - and unlikely to be reunited again in my lifetime. Not to mention some masterpieces - e.g. Duccio’s Annunciation.

What is really exciting about this exhibition is its dive into some art history discussion. This is something I love, but don’t often experience.

Rating: 5/5 ★★★★★

I have condensed my write-up into blocks devoted to each master, over two blog posts.

✲

Some noteworthy points of art history raised in the exhibition vis-a-vis Siena:

• Between 1300-1350, it was a major city in that area of Italy. This is because of the pilgrimage route first followed by Archbishop Sigeric from Canterbury to Rome in AD 990. This meant that Siena was extremely well-placed for the merchants and traders (to and from Champagne and Flanders etc.) as well as the Papacy’s influence (seated in Rome) between Southern and Northern Europe.
• That pilgrimage route and tradition was a very important source of patronage for the arts - e.g. goldsmiths. Pilgrims would buy bits-and-bobs of devotional significance in Siena and then bring them back home up North.
• Siena was a city dedicated to Mary, Mother of God – leitmotif of the exhibition. (She was considered to have intervened to save Siena from Florence in 1260 at the Battle of Montaperti).
• Siena (for this period, 1300-1350) enjoyed a period of stability in its (slightly) representative government which gave rise, as the exhibition would describe it, to “the rise of painting”. A true bourgeoning. It flourished again in the 15th century. But, in 1550, Siena was conquered by the city of Florence. As part of the conquest, the art of Siena had begun to be forgotten. Giorgio Vasari has to absorb some of the blame here too.
• The city of Siena experienced the devastating event – the Black Death.
• The exhibition makes clear that Simone Martini’s style became influential to the International Gothic of the courts of Northern Europe, extending to the glorious “Wilton Diptych” of England.

✲✲✲

Part 1 - Introduction & Duccio

Duccio was the formative star painter of Siena. What’s amusing is that there are (apparently) records of his misdemeanours - e.g. “unruly behaviour” and unpaid taxes (haha!). Yet, his Maesta is one of the touchstones of Western painting.

Among Duccio’s many gifts is his ability to create coherent, emotionally engaging images that draw on disparate sources.

Duccio knew the Byzantine art tradition but was also well-placed wrt Northern European Gothic art.

✲✲✲

Madonna and Child (The Stroganoff Madonna) by Duccio (1290-1300)

According to the exhibition, it is Duccio who began the tradition of Italian Renaissance depictions of the Virgin Mary and her baby with touching maternal gestures and expressions. Mary lovingly holds her little boy. Baby Jesus responds to her caress - as all babies do - by pulling on her veil and touching her wrist with his toes. Mary’s tragic expression reveals her knowledge of her child’s future suffering.

There is a 3D parapet.

The Virgin and Child by the “Master of the Clarisse” (1270-80) and La Madonna del Carmine by a Byzantine artist (13th century). In the latter, it is clear how Duccio departs from the traditional Byzantine iconography of the Hodegetria (the guide). In the former, it is obvious how Duccio’s depiction is much more emotionally engaging (even though the art is moving in that direction).

✲✲✲

The Virgin and Child Enthroned with Angels by Duccio (1290-5)

Beautiful.

An object of private prayer. The Virgin, the Queen of Heaven, on a decorated throne surrounded by six angels.

Again, we see the emotional attachment of mother and son. Christ clings tight to Mary, one hand round her neck, the other stroking her fingers.

This is a cousin of The Rucellai Madonna at the Uffizi.

✲✲✲

Triptych: Crucifixion and other Scenes by Duccio

The earliest of Duccio’s surviving triptychs.

Mother Mary appears in all but one of the scenes.

When Saint Francis received the wounds of the stigmata, Christ appeared to him on a winged cross as a seraph with six flaming wings.

✲✲✲

The Crucifixion by Master of Città di Castello (1315-20)

This artist, whose name is lost, was one of Duccio’s most talented followers.

It seems he was inspired by some of Duccio’s interpretations from the Maesta. Striking is Mary Magdalene stretching her arms to the heavens.

✲✲✲

Triptych with the Crucifixion, Saint Nicholas, Saint Clement and the Redeemer with Angels by Duccio (1311-18)

A very intense central panel - a paroxysm of confusion and grief. Soldiers and onlookers gesticulating wildly or recoil in horror.

I love the Saints and their robes. Attention to detail and delicacy.

Mourners gather to support Mary’s fainting body.

I was curious about the origin of Mary’s fainting in depictions of crucifixions. I wondered whether it started with Duccio. After some research, it seems to have originated slightly earlier in 1260, by Nicola Pisano:

... panels from the Pulpit of the Baptistery of Pisa. The panel of the Presentation in the Temple (left). The Crucifixion panel (center) depicts more classically-inspired figures, here the figure of the grieving Virgin Mary represented falling into the arms of the other women ... , adds something totally new to the iconography of this scene, something more “human” than “divine”.

✲✲✲

The Virgin and Child with Saints Dominic and Aurea by Duccio (1300-1305)

I have already blogged about this particular triptych at the NG.

It is astonishingly touching with a sense of melancholy. I love it. The ultramarine is astounding.

Duccio built on techniques and iconography to create powerful paintings evocative of empathy and awe.

✲✲✲✲✲

Part 2 - Duccio’s Maesta

The exhibition then moves to a magical moment of Sienese art history.

In 1311, a huge painting of the Virgin Mary was welcomed to Siena Cathedral. That Maesta was commissioned from Duccio for the high altar in honour of the Virgin, Siena’s patron. The altarpiece front was the Virgin seated. At the back, a sequence of scenes from Christ’s life.

This exhibition reunited all eight of the surviving panels from the back predella (and two from the front) for the first time since they were sawn in half (in 1771) and sold separately some 250 years ago. The exhibition argues that Simone Martini, Pietro and possibly Ambrogio worked with Duccio on his Maesta.

All of the 8 surviving predella scenes.

✲✲✲

The Nativity with the Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel

The reclining Virgin Mary, the Christ Child being bathed, the stable in a cave.

Prophets Isaiah & Ezekiel holding prophecies foretelling the virgin birth.

✲✲✲

The Annunciation

Love it.

Such a charming & delicate rendering.

Virgin Mary pulls her cloak protectively recoiling from Gabriel’s announcement.

A tony dove descending from the heavens.

✲✲✲

The Temptation of Christ on the Temple

Devil challenging Christ to jump from the Temple, thereby testing God’s “protection”.

Interesting depiction of the devil is as a dark winged figure.

✲✲✲

The Temptation of Christ on the Mountain

Fascinating landscape, cityscape and depiction of the devil.

On the mountain tops, the devil devil promised Christ all the kingdoms of the world, if he would bow down to him.

✲✲✲

The Calling of the Apostles Peter and Andrew

So beautiful. The colours are so vivid. The delicacy of the human expression.

I love the intricate fish painted in the water.

“Jesus walked by the Sea of Galilee, saw the brothers Simon Peter and Andrew casting nets, and invited them to follow him, saying, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men”. At once, they left their nets and followed him, becoming his first disciples.”

✲✲✲

The Wedding at Cana

An interesting sense of perspective and proportions. And colours.

The moment when Christ and the disciples (at a wedding) find the hosts ran out of wine.

Water being poured into a glass - becoming wine.

✲✲✲

Christ and the Woman of Samaria

Incredibly vivid and exquisite.

Fabulous green porphyry well and paved city roads.

Tired from travelling through Samaria, Christ sat down by Jacob’s well.

While his disciples sought food, he asked for a drink from a Samaritan woman who came to draw water.

After the conversation, she recognised him as the Messiah.

✲✲✲

The Healing of the Man Born Blind

I love the architectural Siennes background.

The blind man appearing twice - before and after.

✲✲✲

The Transfiguration

On a high mountain, Christ was transfigured.

The Christ depiction is based on Byzantine iconography.

The “striations” of gold leaf appear as “golden folds” in Christ’s garments - technique called chrysography. It was used in the Byzantine to capture the radiance of Christ - and its effect is magical.

✲✲✲

The Raising of Lazarus

Christ’s power over death.

Christ visited the grave of his friend Lazarus.

Lazarus appears alive - and still wrapped in his burial shroud and smelling of the grave.

✲✲✲✲✲

Part 3 - Simone Martini

Following the death of Duccio in 1319, Simone Martini (1284-1344) became Siena’s foremost painter. As the exhibition explains, his name appears on almost all civic public records of commissions at the time.

Not only did he achieve an incredible decorative power to his art, but he was technical virtuoso. As the exhibition points out, his draped clothes suggest a link between Siena and the French gothic. Indeed, not only would he be working in Angevins (for the French royal family), but eventually at the papal court at Avignon.

✲✲✲

Christ on the Cross by Simone Martini

Wow. Such a powerful painting. As Harvard write:

The jewel-like image shows the figure of the crucified Christ alone, heightening the beholder’s empathy and engagement with his suffering. This delicate painting may have been made during the final period of the artist’s life, which Simone spent in the papal court at Avignon in France.

Saint John the Evangelist by Simone Martini

Jaw tense and eyes narrowed.

Grief-stricken.

The Palazzo Pubblico Altarpiece by Simone Martini

These panels were probably made for Siena’s government headquarters, the Palazzo Pubblico.

Simone Martini’s attention to detail is masterful - hair minutely depicted, vital flesh tones, fabrics etc.

The Virgin Mary looks towards us.

Saint Ansanus and Saint Peter (keys).

Saint Ansanus, The Apostle of Siena, is the patron saint of Siena.

The Madonna and Saint Andrew (long hair & book).

Chubby gingery hair.

Saint Luke.

✲✲✲

Old Saint, Saint John the Baptist, Saint Peter and Young Saint with a Book by Gano di Fazio

The exhibition explains that sculptures are reminiscent of Simone Martini’s early works in Siena.

And hence his broader influence on art history.

✲✲✲

Diptych with the Annunciation and the Assumption by Francesco di Vannuccio

The exhibition uses this portable diptych to illustrate the long shadow that Simone Martini cast over artists in Siena. The exhibition explains the inspiration was probably Simone’s Annunciation at the Uffizi:

✲✲✲✲✲

Part 4 - Simone Martini in Avignon

In 1309, the court of the Popes settled in Avignon, Southern France. At the time, the Papal court were especially attracted to Sienese paintings. Thus, in the first half of the 14th century, the city became home to one of the greatest communities of Sienese painters and goldsmiths outside Tuscany. Foremost among them was Simone Martini, who left Siena after 1333 and spent the final decade of his life in Avignon.

Siena’s fortunes waned in the second half of the 14th century, following the bubonic plague. But the city’s artistic legacy would be tended by generations of artists beyond Siena.

The Orsini Polyptych by Simone Martini

How the polyptych would open.

The Archangel Gabriel and the Virgin Annunciate.

Wow!! Incredibly beautiful.

This is one of the highlights of the exhibition, for me.

The folded arms, beautiful if slightly pained eyes.

The robes are so ornate and intricate - still flapping.

The Way to Calvary and The Crucifixion.

The emotions on Christ and Mary Magdalena.

The sienes architecture and vivid colours are so striking.

Breathtaking.

Angels raising their arms.

Mother Mary collapsing, and people pointing.

The Deposition and The Entombment.

✲✲✲

Christ Discovered in the Temple by Simone Martini

In the Gospel of Luke, the twelve-year-old Jesus is found in the Temple in Jerusalem by his parents.

Here he seems to be admonished by his mum, and he’s irritated at being told off (😁) !! As Sara McKee writes:

The panel portrays a very rare subject. It appears to show Jesus saying goodbye to his parents, Mary and Joseph ... Unusually for the period, it represents an involved human situation, a difficult family issue not yet resolve.

✲✲✲

The Belles Heures of Jean De France by The de Limbourg Brothers

The exhibition points to the Sienese influence on the de Limbourg brothers.

In The Belles Heures (“Beautiful Hours”) prayer book:

In this striking Lamentation, several motifs - like the woman tearing at her hair, Saint John the Evangelist covering his eyes, and Mary Magdalene seen from behind crouching over Christ’s feet - are adapted from Simone’s Orsini Polyptych, which their patron may once have owned, and Pietro Lorenzetti’s frescoes at Assisi.

✲✲✲

The Wilton Diptych

The exhibition explains that the Wilton Diptych is an example of the international impact of Sienese art. The kneeling king is presented to the Virgin and Child.

Most likely painted in northern Europe, but the technique is Italian. The sgraffito technique of scratching away paint to reveal gold leaf. Used on the splendid textiles - a characteristically Sienese effect.