Madonna Enthroned by Saints, Essay Example

During the beginning of the Italian Renaissance, religious-themed paintings depicting Mary and baby Jesus were quite popular and many of these scenes were recreated to reflect new artistic ideas regarding the Immaculate Conception. Although many European painters followed this trend, Italian art is considered novel because many ideas that marked the Renaissance began in this area, allowing artistic concepts and ideas to evolve more rapidly. Ultimately, the Italian Renaissance was a revival of the art and thought of ancient Greeks and Romans. Since the polytheistic gods and goddesses were of extreme importance to these people, it is intuitive that the Italians followed this trend by creating similar works that instead depicted icons of their own religion. Two paintings “Madonna Enthroned by Saints” created in 1502 and “Madonna of the Goldfinch” created in 1508, are iconic of Italian Renaissance art. Interestingly, “Madonna of the Goldfinch” has a more realistic appearance than “Madonna Enthroned by Saints” due to enhanced color vibrancy and a greater freedom of character movement. Despite this, the themes of the two paintings are similar.

The painting “Madonna Enthroned by Saints” reflects the importance of religion to individuals living during the Italian Renaissance. Although religious themes were equally important during the Middle Ages, which just prior to the development of this artistic movement, the character of these religious pieces differed significantly. For example, religious characters of the Middle Ages appeared more rigid and do not interact with their surroundings. We clearly do not see this rigidity in “Madonna Enthroned by Saints”, which is depicted above. Although the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus are the focus of this painting, there are saints and angels surrounding them, offering praise and admiration. This differs significantly from a similar scene painted during the Middle Ages, because the attention of the characters would be directed forwards, towards the viewer.

“Madonna Enthroned by Saints” is an excellent example of early Italian Renaissance art because it shows a certain color vibrancy that was not utilized in earlier works. Researchers predict that this piece was painted between 1400 and 1500 A.D., indicating that it was produced at the very beginning of the Italian Renaissance. Thus, it is not surprising that these biblical characters appear true to life. Many other pieces in our gallery from this time period reflect similar characteristics. Although each artist brings his unique flare to the piece, Renaissance art from similar time periods and geographic areas are typically similar in theme and presentation.

A second piece created during the early Italian Renaissance that is noteworthy is entitled “Madonna of the Goldfinch” and was created by Raphael, a well-known Renaissance artist. This image can be viewed above. This image has many similarities to “Madonna Enthroned by Saints” and the most striking similarity is its theme. In both pieces, the Virgin Mary is lovingly admiring baby Jesus. In addition, this piece has a high level of interactions between characters, like the first. However, “Madonna of the Goldfinch” represents artwork that is more typical of the High Renaissance than the early Renaissance. It is more lifelike than “Madonna Enthroned by Saints” and varies more from how one would expect an artist to paint a religious scene. Rather than being depicted in more of a confined space, Raphael attempts to recreate interactions between Mary and Jesus as he believes they actually occurred, while still emphasizing the glory of baby Jesus. It is very possible that Mary played with baby Jesus outside in this fashion, while Jesus’ posture emphasizes his greatness. A major difference between the two paintings is that in “Madonna Enthroned by Saints”, Mary is sitting on a throne and in “Madonna of the Goldfinch”, she’s sitting on a rock.

Despite the differences between “Madonna Enthroned by Saints” and “Madonna of the Goldfinch”, a major similarity in both paintings is that Mary is wearing blue, which is the color of the sky. It is possible that both artists were intentional with this color selection and did so to emphasize Mary’s virtue and godliness. Furthermore, in both images, baby Jesus is unclothed. Interestingly, both paintings also include symbols of the crucifixion. In “Madonna Enthroned by Saints”, one of the prophets is holding a cross. During Jesus’ life however, this was not yet a symbol of Christianity; it wasn’t until Jesus died for the sins of humanity that this symbol came meaningful. However, it is present in the painting nonetheless for modern readers to make this connection. In “Madonna of the Goldfinch”, the Goldfinch is symbolic of Jesus’ sacrifice as well. The reason for this is the tale that the red spot of the bird formed at the time of the crucifixion and formed from a splash of Jesus’ blood. In this painting, baby Jesus is reaching out towards it, which is symbolically demonstrating that even as a baby, he knew his duty to humanity.

It is worthwhile to examine similar pieces to these in the gallery, as they represent visual records of history. Depictions of Mary and baby Jesus became commonplace in the Middle Ages and this trend has continued to the modern era. By examining these pieces, it’s easy to determine the values that the people of the time period held. While religion was important during the Middle Ages and certainly remains important to this day, we see the way that important biblical characters are depicted change, the color schemes change, and their interactions change. In this way, we can track artistic movements throughout time.

As you view the gallery, there are several questions you should ask yourself as you encounter these different works. Firstly, note what year the piece was created in. This will impact the particular style of the work in addition to the colors used in its production. During the Middle Ages, there were less dyes available for paints and thus the colors used appear to be Earth tones. In contrast, the colors used by Renaissance painters are much more vibrant. Next, consider the artist’s message. Are the characters interacting with one another or are they focused on the viewer? Pieces that focus on the viewer are more likely to have been produced during the Middle Ages and may have once adorned churches or households of the nobility. These pieces were meant to remind viewers of the importance of religion. On the other hand, Renaissance paintings that show interaction between characters were meant to tell a story and it is up to the interpretation of the viewer to determine what this story is. Many modern paintings combine the elements of art that had been created in the past, and are unique in their ability to combine many different art movements. Thus, it is less important for you to determine what you think the artist’s message is; rather, you should attempt to find your own meaning within it.

Works Cited

Cast, David. “Review: Fra Girolamo Savonarola: Florentine Art and Renaissance Historiography by Ronald M. Steinberg”. The Art Bulletin, 61.1 (1979): 134-136. Print.

Hartt F, Wilkins DG. History of Italian Art: Painting, Sculpture, Architecture. New York: Pearson, 2003.