Renaissance Art Characteristics, Research Paper Example

St. Nicholas with the Emperor’s Envoy and the Miraculous Rescue of a Sailing Vessel was created in Vatican City between 1437 and 1449 by Fra Angelico. The paintings in the coursework that I encountered this semester from a range of centuries shared many similarities with art that had been generated during the Italian Renaissance. I encountered this image when I was doing an internet search for religious scenes that deviated from the typical depiction of Mary and baby Jesus. While this image does depict Christian saints, as denoted by the halo surrounding St. Nicholas, it attempts to tell a less commonly represented biblical story, which I found interesting. This figure was discussed in an article by the Huffington Post (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-galenson/florence-renaissance-art_b_1110498.html).

It is essential to identify the background of this painting in order to truly understand it. This particular painting was commissioned and created during the Early Renaissance in Italy, which occurred between the years of 1400 to 1479. While religion was the primary theme of art during the Middle Ages, this trend continued in a form of secularism during the Renaissance. Rather than focusing on the same common religious scenes using rigid and severe expressions, religious art during the Renaissance focused on these religious characters as humans and attempted to elucidate their personalities through depiction¹. Furthermore, art became more widely available during this time period; while monarchs provided a majority of funding for art during the Middle Ages, this enlightened period allowed the clergy to renew an interest in and commission the development of new interpretations of religious scenarios². As members of the general public became more affluent, they were able to commission paintings of themselves and their loved ones for the first time as well³. It is therefore not surprising that St. Nicholas with the Emperor’s Envoy and the Miraculous Rescue of a Sailing Vessel, which was commissioned by Vatican to decorate the chapel of Pope Nicholas. Fra Angelico had a unique ability to do so due to his dual role as artist and a Dominican friar⁴.

Several aspects of St. Nicholas with the Emperor’s Envoy and the Miraculous Rescue of a Sailing Vessel make the image noticeable and enjoyable. Firstly, it is important to consider that this painting was surrounded by many others in the chapel of Pope Nicholas. To ensure that each painting would tell a part of the same story, Fra Angelico focused much of his work on the story of the saints. It is not currently known which paintings surrounded this particular one during the Renaissance, but is possible that the scenes depicted other stories of St. Nicholas or of religious events that coincided with this one. This painting is very lively, which may be due in part to the bright oil paints utilized. The shadowing assists this effect; the people in the scene, which are the objects closest to us, are the brightest, while the objects furthest from us, such as the ocean, are slightly darkened in comparison. Furthermore, this scene emphasizes interaction between individuals. Images of saints that were commissioned during the Middle Ages show limited interaction between individuals in order to emphasize each person or object depicted. In addition, these characters typically face forward as if they are communicating with the audience. Renaissance paintings have an opposite effect; emphasis is placed on the story being told rather than the viewer. In this particular situation, Saint Nicholas is clear interacting with the emperor’s envoy. In addition, this helps tell the story because he is shown to be responsible for saving the lives of these individuals who nearly perished at sea; the characters appear to be thanking him and the angel who brought them to safety.

The importance of this artwork is due to the role of Saint Nicholas in Christianity. He is associated with making many miracles occur, such as the giving of miraculous gifts, and is interestingly the model for our modern concept of Santa Claus. St. Nicholas with the Emperor’s Envoy and the Miraculous Rescue of a Sailing Vessel is an excellent example of the type of miracle that St. Nicholas is associated with and this particular scene may allude to any of several events that are discussed in the bible. In particular, St. Nicholas is considered to be the patron saint of several cities maintaining harbors and was extremely popular among fisherman and those who rely on sea travel. His power over the sea is certainly represented in this Renaissance painting, although it is difficult to discern whether his interaction with the emperor’s envoy was a true occurrence either in historical or religious doctrine. It is likely that Fra Angelico created the scene based on information that was already known about the saint and his life and placed him in a situation that viewers of the scene would understand. In this sense, the artist is demystifying the life of this Saint using imagination and biblical knowledge. In this sense, this piece can be considered secular due to its deviation from a precise interpretation of the bible. As such, several main points of this artwork can be inferred. The first is that Saint Nicholas has power over the sea. This is shown by his ability to summon an angel to help the passengers in the background. The second point of this piece of work is that Saint Nicholas is kind. Even after saving the lives of the travelers, he encounters them on land to determine if any more help is needed. The third point of this piece is that Saint Nicholas is capable of miracles. Life at sea is difficult, but believe in the saints and God will allow one to accomplish even the most perilous of journeys. It is likely that the main points derived from this piece tie in closely to the other work that was displayed nearby in the chapel. The ultimate message is therefore that if one if faithful to God, miracles will happen. This is an important point that has been explored in many other Renaissance paintings, but can easily act as a standalone message in this particular piece.

Bibliography

Dogra A. “Renaissance Art Characteristics”. 5 December 2011. Web. 31 March 2014. <http://www.buzzle.com/articles/renaissance-art-characteristics.html>

History.com Staff. “Renaissance Art”. 2010. Web. 31 March 2014. <http://www.history.com/topics/renaissance-art>

Butler C. “Flow of History”. 2007. Web. 31 March 2014. <http://www.flowofhistory.com/units/west/11/FC76>

Didi-Huberman, Georges. Fra Angelico: Dissemblance and Figuration. University of Chicago Press, 1995.