Walking through the halls of the Sainsbury's wing of the National Gallery here in London, I have always been attracted by some works in particular. Probably because many are Italian and perhaps because several tell stories I've known since I was a child and are part of our culture. Among these is a fifteenth-century altarpiece with almost perfect colors: the Baptism of Christ by Piero della Francesca from 1450.
The theme of the work is a very famous episode in Christian history: The Baptism of Christ. It is a truly widespread theme in Christian art throughout history and many aspects of Piero della Francesca's painting can be compared to other works by Italian artists of this period or slightly earlier or later. None of them, however, in my opinion play with Piero in creating such a monumental scene, but delicate at the same time. And none of them gave the event this timeless yet recognizable setting.
In the biblical stories, in fact, Jesus is baptized by his cousin John in the Jordan River. In this case, however, Piero della Francesca places the scene on the hills that he saw around the city where he was born. And in fact the town that can be glimpsed between Jesus and the tree bears a strong resemblance to Sansepolcro.
In Renaissance paintings, then Christ is usually depicted with an otherworldly aspect, to underline his divine nature. Piero della Francesca, on the other hand, gives it a common look. And he is the protagonist of the work from all points of view, even that of the composition. He is in fact in the exact center and divides it in two.
Above him is a dove. Nothing particularly original because the Bible tells that the moment Jesus is baptized the Holy Spirit descends on him in the form of a dove. And this is one of the characteristics of many representations of Baptism and perhaps also one of the simplest ways to recognize the episode.
To the right of Jesus we find another character, St. John the Baptist who is the co-protagonist of this work. John is a relative of Jesus, as I told you cousin. But above all he is considered the forerunner or herald of Christ. And baptism is precisely that moment which marks the beginning of Jesus' public life, so it is natural that he is accompanied by a figure like that of John.
But let's also observe the other characters who tell us about the episode. In the scene it seems that Jesus only has his feet wet in a stream and has not completely immersed himself in the Jordan which is instead a consistent river full of water. According to biblical stories, the event took place during a general baptism of the people and actually the characters behind John the Baptist here also make us think. Behind him on the right is a man who is undressing as if he were ready to receive Baptism too and behind him a crowd of people who seem to be leaving almost when the event is over.
Finally, paintings of the Baptism of Christ often include two or three angels standing sideways. Sometimes they keep the robes of Christ. And sometimes instead they are inserted in a more ornamental way or to balance the composition. In this work the angels are in my opinion among the most realistic and personal ever seen.
And the balance of the composition is precisely one of the main characteristics of this work. Piero, as I told you, is also a mathematician as well as an artist and his paintings are often real geometric studies. The painting in this case has a round top, while the base is made up of a square. Which turns the whole thing into a square topped by a circle. More obviously a triangle whose vertex is formed by the hands of Jesus. In this way, even the most dynamic part of the composition, the one in which John moves forward and Jesus moves his torso, is in any case within a geometric order.
From the point of view of technique, however, the work was created with the most widespread technique up to then, tempera, in this case on wood. But these are also the years in which the use of oil paint begins to be introduced.
Tempera can produce beautiful and lasting results, but it is difficult to master and requires a lot of patience.
00:00 Intro
00:37 Artist
01:38 Theme
02:11 Details
06:57 Composition
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Art and the Cities is my personal art and travel blog and RU-vid channel. Or rather of art trips. I'm not only talking about art history but also about travel, museums, galleries, the art market, love stories, books, exhibitions and much more.
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Soon,
Clelia
#art
23 июл 2024
