The Exaltation of Beauty
24.02.202509:55
Saint Peter church, Munich
Reposted from:
The Exaltation of Beauty
22.02.202507:48
One of the leading painters of Baroque Naples, Bernardo Cavallino was influenced by masters as diverse as Caravaggio and Rubens. He developed a distinctive manner marked by the dramatic play of light and action.
The Kimbell painting comes from a Spanish collection that also included The Shade of Samuel Invoked by Saul by Cavallino (J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles), and Jonah Preaching to the People at Nineveh by Andrea Vaccaro (Museo de Bellas Artes, Seville). All share narratives in which a king is threatened with death unless he withdraws from warfare against a virtuous people. Another Cavallino, The Expulsion of Heliodorus from the Temple (Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow), concerning a warning against taxation by foreign rulers, may also belong to the group. These themes were of topical interest in Naples, which witnessed revolts against Spanish domination during this period.
The Kimbell painting comes from a Spanish collection that also included The Shade of Samuel Invoked by Saul by Cavallino (J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles), and Jonah Preaching to the People at Nineveh by Andrea Vaccaro (Museo de Bellas Artes, Seville). All share narratives in which a king is threatened with death unless he withdraws from warfare against a virtuous people. Another Cavallino, The Expulsion of Heliodorus from the Temple (Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow), concerning a warning against taxation by foreign rulers, may also belong to the group. These themes were of topical interest in Naples, which witnessed revolts against Spanish domination during this period.
Reposted from:The Exaltation of Beauty
16.02.202522:05
Francesco di Giorgio was an outstanding architect, sculptor, painter, and theorist. Curiously, his fanciful paintings often show a disregard for perspective and anatomy and this has led to much discussion about his use of assistants. The upper part of this engaging composition is very inventive and was inspired by the sculptural reliefs of Donatello, while the lower part reflects Francesco's admiration for the work of the north Italian miniaturist Girolamo da Cremona, who worked on choirbooks in Siena from 1470 to 1474. So different in character are the upper and lower parts that they were separated in the nineteenth century; they were rejoined in 1988.
Reposted from:The Exaltation of Beauty
16.02.202522:04
In making this painting for the Torre de la Parada, Rubens based some figures on earlier models. Pluto is based on a figure by Michelangelo which Rubens had copied in his notebook during his trip to Italy, while the Eurydice´s chaste gesture is based on some sculptures from Antiquity.
09.02.202521:48
God the Father sits on clouds with a raised sword in his left hand and plague arrows pointing downwards in his right. An angel raises his sword, one shoots arrows at sinful humanity, a third throws a millstone. Mary bares her breast in intercession, from which she fed her son. As the Madonna of the Protective Cloak, she is surrounded by representatives of the spiritual and secular classes, including the Pope with bishop, cardinal and clergy and the Emperor with elector, nobility and citizens.
09.02.202521:13
The Count is wearing etched, fire-gilded parade armor. The armor is decorated with the coat of arms and motto of the ancient Lombard family of the Borromei. Together with the date of the picture and the estimated age of the man it was possible to identify the Count. The portrait is the only known signed work of the artist, who was born in Danzig. He worked as a portrait painter in northern Italy, particularly in Bergamo and Milan, in the second half of the 17th century. He was active as a portrait painter in northern Italy, particularly in Bergamo and in Milan, in the second half of the 17th c.
Reposted from:The Exaltation of Beauty
22.02.202507:50
Bernardo Cavallino, The Shade of Samuel Invoked by Saul, 61 × 86.4 cm, oil on copper, Getty Museum
Bernardo Cavallino depicts an episode from the Bible in which King Saul, about to enter into battle with the Philistines, asked the Witch of Endor to summon the spirit of the recently deceased prophet Samuel, the last Judge of the Israelites. Silhouetted against a bright light emanating from a nearby doorway, Samuel's skin appears suitably ashen and gray. He engages the kneeling king with a penetrating stare, and delivers news that the next day the Philistines will defeat Israel and that Saul and his sons will die in battle. Cavallino eloquently conveys the emotional interaction among the three figures as Samuel relays this news.
Bernardo Cavallino depicts an episode from the Bible in which King Saul, about to enter into battle with the Philistines, asked the Witch of Endor to summon the spirit of the recently deceased prophet Samuel, the last Judge of the Israelites. Silhouetted against a bright light emanating from a nearby doorway, Samuel's skin appears suitably ashen and gray. He engages the kneeling king with a penetrating stare, and delivers news that the next day the Philistines will defeat Israel and that Saul and his sons will die in battle. Cavallino eloquently conveys the emotional interaction among the three figures as Samuel relays this news.
Reposted from:The Exaltation of Beauty
20.02.202510:32
Cherub and shell, possibly 1470s, Sculptor close to Donatello, 39x44cm, 14kg, The Met
In the Catholic tradition, four-winged cherubim belong to the second order of the hierarchy of angels and attend close to God in heaven. In this remarkable bronze, a single cherub is crowned with a fillet dotted with flowers. The tops of two arched wings flank its head; another pair gently enfolds beneath its chin. A large scallop-shaped shell fans outward below the wings like an expanding burst of radiance. With lowered head and wide-open eyes, the cherub looks downward, revealing its teeth in a broad smile. Its transfixed expression conveys the encompassing, beatific joy of beings who dwell in God’s presence as witnesses to divine glory. The shell is a symbol of baptism and pilgrimage that in its metaphorical sense alludes to the journey of the soul upward toward God.
In the Catholic tradition, four-winged cherubim belong to the second order of the hierarchy of angels and attend close to God in heaven. In this remarkable bronze, a single cherub is crowned with a fillet dotted with flowers. The tops of two arched wings flank its head; another pair gently enfolds beneath its chin. A large scallop-shaped shell fans outward below the wings like an expanding burst of radiance. With lowered head and wide-open eyes, the cherub looks downward, revealing its teeth in a broad smile. Its transfixed expression conveys the encompassing, beatific joy of beings who dwell in God’s presence as witnesses to divine glory. The shell is a symbol of baptism and pilgrimage that in its metaphorical sense alludes to the journey of the soul upward toward God.
Reposted from:The Exaltation of Beauty
16.02.202522:05
The Nativity, by Francesco di Giorgio Martini, 52.7 x 60 cm, tempera on wood
Reposted from:The Exaltation of Beauty
16.02.202522:04
Orpheus and Eurydice, by Rubens, 194×245 cm, Prado Museum
Orpheus descends into the Underworld to recover his wife, Eurydice, who died after being bitten by a serpent. Pluto and Proserpina, the god and goddess of the underworld, are so moved by the music of his lyre that they accede to his request. The only condition they impose is that he contains his desire and not look at his beloved until they have both fully departed the underworld. On the basis of this story from Ovid´s Metamorphoses (book X, 1-59), Rubens designs a very balanced painting. On the right are Pluto and Proserpina, whose gesture warns Orpheus of the conditions of their agreement. Below them is Cerberus, the dog who guards Hell. On the left, the deathly white body of Eurydice, still showing the serpent´s bite, contrasts with the living body of Orpheus. He is depicted at the very moment when his feeling of love provokes him to look back at his beloved. This is just before she dissolves into smoke because he has not heeded the god´s warning.
Orpheus descends into the Underworld to recover his wife, Eurydice, who died after being bitten by a serpent. Pluto and Proserpina, the god and goddess of the underworld, are so moved by the music of his lyre that they accede to his request. The only condition they impose is that he contains his desire and not look at his beloved until they have both fully departed the underworld. On the basis of this story from Ovid´s Metamorphoses (book X, 1-59), Rubens designs a very balanced painting. On the right are Pluto and Proserpina, whose gesture warns Orpheus of the conditions of their agreement. Below them is Cerberus, the dog who guards Hell. On the left, the deathly white body of Eurydice, still showing the serpent´s bite, contrasts with the living body of Orpheus. He is depicted at the very moment when his feeling of love provokes him to look back at his beloved. This is just before she dissolves into smoke because he has not heeded the god´s warning.
09.02.202521:47
Martin Schaffner, Wing from
a Plague Altar, c. 1514
a Plague Altar, c. 1514
09.02.202521:08
Portrait of Count Carlo IV Borromeo, c. 1685, by Salomon Adler, Germanisches Nationalmuseums
Reposted from:The Exaltation of Beauty
22.02.202507:50
The smooth, uniform surface of the painting’s copper support facilitated the application of paint in fine brushstrokes, as evidenced by carefully delineated contours and minute details, like the individual wisps of hair in Saul’s beard. Little is known about the artist’s life and work, but he is recognized for small-scale narrative compositions on copper and canvas, such as this one. Cavallino’s initials are included on a stone step to the left of the composition, making it one of only eight signed works by the Neapolitan artist.
Reposted from:The Exaltation of Beauty
18.02.202520:31
Using rational perspective and lighting, Fra Angelico was among the first Florentine artists to adopt the younger artist Masaccio’s pictorial innovations.
The panel is exceptionally well preserved. The refinement of Fra Angelico’s technique is apparent in his use of pure pigments, such as vermilion and lapis lazuli, and in his masterful use of gilding in the decorative borders of the drapery.
Born Guido di Piero, the artist known as Fra Angelico acquired his nickname not long after his death, when he was referred to as “Angelicus” by a fellow Dominican monk for his pious life and artworks. He was already an established painter and illuminator of manuscripts in Florence when he entered the Observant Dominican Order as Fra Giovanni sometime between 1418 and 1423.
The panel is exceptionally well preserved. The refinement of Fra Angelico’s technique is apparent in his use of pure pigments, such as vermilion and lapis lazuli, and in his masterful use of gilding in the decorative borders of the drapery.
Born Guido di Piero, the artist known as Fra Angelico acquired his nickname not long after his death, when he was referred to as “Angelicus” by a fellow Dominican monk for his pious life and artworks. He was already an established painter and illuminator of manuscripts in Florence when he entered the Observant Dominican Order as Fra Giovanni sometime between 1418 and 1423.
Reposted from:The Exaltation of Beauty
16.02.202522:05
Still Life with Grapes and Other Fruit, 1630s, by Luca Forte
14.02.202521:57
Eduard Stiegel - View of Marburg with the old university, Lahn bridge and Deutschherrenmühle (1868)
09.02.202521:22
The Augsburg painter studied with Rembrandt in the 2nd half of the 1640s. Later he traveled to Antwerp, England and Rome. In this self-portrait he presents himself as an erudite artist. The antique head documents Mayr's knowledge of Classical Antiquity. Along with Nature it was considered the most important model for art. The drawing pencil stands for the design and thus for the creative idea. By referring to their intellectual abilities the painters laid claim to their emancipation from craftsman to artist. With the allusion to their intellectual abilities painters lay claim to their emancipation from the status of craftsman to that of artist.
09.02.202520:48
The painting, discolored by age, shows one of the 12 Labors of Hercules: He is fighting birds of prey that could shoot their feathers like arrows. The painting probably harks back to descriptions of paintings from Classical Antiquity. The famous painter Apelles had accomplished the feat of painting Hercules from the back, yet with his face still showing. Dürer, celebrated as the "New Apelles" since 1499, competed with antiquity with this painting. He lent the Greek hero his own facial features.
Reposted from:The Exaltation of Beauty
22.02.202507:48
Mucius Scaevola Confronting King Porsenna, c. 1650, by Bernardo Cavallino, 61.2 x 89.2 cm, oil on copper, Kimbell Art Museum
The subject of this painting is taken from Livy’s account of the Etruscan siege of Rome. Gaius Mucius, a young Roman nobleman, infiltrated the enemy camp in an attempt to slay the Etruscan king Porsenna, but mistakenly killed the king’s treasurer.
At center stage is Gaius, who defiantly turns his head and dagger toward Porsenna, warning him that he is one of many youths sworn to assassinate him. Demonstrating his resolve, Gaius unflinchingly holds his hand in the hot embers until it is burned away. Porsenna was so impressed by this action that he freed the young hero and concluded peace with Rome. Gaius Mucius was thereafter known as Mucius Scaevola (the left-handed).
The subject of this painting is taken from Livy’s account of the Etruscan siege of Rome. Gaius Mucius, a young Roman nobleman, infiltrated the enemy camp in an attempt to slay the Etruscan king Porsenna, but mistakenly killed the king’s treasurer.
At center stage is Gaius, who defiantly turns his head and dagger toward Porsenna, warning him that he is one of many youths sworn to assassinate him. Demonstrating his resolve, Gaius unflinchingly holds his hand in the hot embers until it is burned away. Porsenna was so impressed by this action that he freed the young hero and concluded peace with Rome. Gaius Mucius was thereafter known as Mucius Scaevola (the left-handed).
Reposted from:The Exaltation of Beauty
18.02.202520:31
The Apostle Saint James the Greater Freeing the Magician Hermogenes, c. 1426–29, by Fra Angelico, tempera and gold on panel, 26.8 x 23.8 cm, Kimbell Art Museum
The subject of the picture is taken from the thirteenth-century Golden Legend, which relates how Saint James the Greater ordered the Christian convert Philetus to free the repentant magician Hermogenes, who had been bound by the very devils he sent to vanquish Saint James. A haloed Saint James taps Philetus with his staff, empowering him to unloose the cords of Hermogenes, metaphorically absolving his sins.
This painting originally formed part of the predella of a dismantled altarpiece. The four other extant predella panels are devoted to the lives of the Virgin and various saints.
The subject of the picture is taken from the thirteenth-century Golden Legend, which relates how Saint James the Greater ordered the Christian convert Philetus to free the repentant magician Hermogenes, who had been bound by the very devils he sent to vanquish Saint James. A haloed Saint James taps Philetus with his staff, empowering him to unloose the cords of Hermogenes, metaphorically absolving his sins.
This painting originally formed part of the predella of a dismantled altarpiece. The four other extant predella panels are devoted to the lives of the Virgin and various saints.
Reposted from:The Exaltation of Beauty
16.02.202522:05
Luca Forte's original meaning for this bountiful still life has been lost, but it may be an evocation of the bounty of autumn. The grapes, apples, and pears represent harvest fruits, and a seed-filled open pomegranate itself symbolizes abundance. As here, Forte typically added tiny insects, snails, and drops of moisture to the fruit. By painting on a copper panel with painstaking brushwork, he gave his surfaces a polished smoothness similar to fine enamel.Forte was known for his sensitivity to the material nature of the objects he represented, capturing their solidity and roundness through light, shade, and color. Best known in his own day as a specialist in these fruit still lifes, Forte transformed the development of the still life genre in Naples. He introduced landscapes as backdrops, instead of the plain, dark backgrounds of the earlier Neapolitan style, which followed Caravaggio's lead.
12.02.202522:06
Church of Our Lady, Bamberg, Germany
09.02.202521:18
Self-portrait with antique head, c. 1650, Johann Ulrich Mayr, Germanisches Nationalmuseums
09.02.202520:43
Hercules Killing the Stymphalian Birds, 1500, by Albrecht Dürer, Germanisches Nationalmuseum, Nuremberg
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