Uffizi Gallery in Florence. Address and description of the museum. Uffizi Gallery in Florence (Galleria degli Uffizi) Uffizi Palace in Florence

"Flower of Tuscany" was called in ancient times Florence. Even among other cities in Italy, rich in historical and artistic monuments, this flourishing city is rightfully considered a treasure trove of art. It is decorated with the immortal creations of Giotto, Michelangelo, Brunelleschi, Cellini and many other great architects, sculptors and painters.

Ancient Florentine palaces, churches with frescoes by famous artists, museums with their truly priceless treasures have long attracted art connoisseurs from all over the world. For the Italians themselves, Florence is a symbol of the Renaissance. Several decades ago, the historic center of Florence was closed to cars. The streets were restored to their original charm, it became easier to imagine how Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo passed by these very houses, the indomitable Dominican monk Savanarola walked in a crowd of fanatical admirers ... Unfortunately, inexorable time destroyed the stone in Duomo Square, on which he loved alone sit great Dante. But every Florentine can show you this place...

Already in antiquity, many considered Florence the most perfect of all cities. For example, Leonardo Bruni wrote in a laudatory word to the city: “There is nothing disorderly in it, nothing inappropriate, nothing unreasonable, nothing unreasonable; everything has its place, and not only strictly defined, but also appropriate and necessary. The Florentines glorified their city not only in words, not only by writing laudatory messages. They transformed its buildings, squares and streets, and celebrated holidays with unprecedented luxury. By the middle of the XIV century, many families with inexhaustible energy and business acumen (Strozzi, Alberti, etc.) rose to the surface of the urban life of Florence. Among them, the Medici family stood out, who in the past were healers (this is what their surname means). But by the middle of the 15th century, the Medici banking house had become one of the richest and most influential in Florence. The UVFICI, in Florence, is one of the most representative art galleries in Italy. Housed in a building built for government offices in 1560-1585. architects G. Vasari and B. Buontalenti. Founded in 1575 on the basis of the collections of the Medici family. The gallery keeps the richest collection of Italian XIII-XVIII centuries in the world. (works by Duccio, Giotto, P. Uccello, Piero della Francesca, S. Botticelli, Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Titian, etc.) and European painting, works of ancient art, a unique selection of self-portraits of European artists. The Uffizi Gallery (it. Galleria degli Uffizi) is a palace or, as it is also called, a palazzo in Florence, Italy, where one of the oldest and most famous museums in the world is located. The Uffizi Gallery is located in the heart of Florence. In the north, the building borders on the Palazzo Vecchio and Piazza della Signoria, while its south side overlooks the embankment of the river Ario and Poite Vecchio.
The history of the Uffizi begins in July 1559, when the ruler of Florence, Cosimo I Medici, plans to unite all the administrative services of the city in a common spacious palace. To implement the project, the master Giorgio Vasari was invited, who began work in 1560. However, Vasari died in 1574, and his successor, Bernardo Buontalenti, completed the construction. Since 1575, the formation of the museum began in the Uffizi building - its basis was the Medici family collection

"Portrait of Bia Medici

daughter of Cosimo I", 1542 Uffizi Gallery, Florence

Portrait of Cosimo I Medici in armor, 1545

Cosimo Medici went down in history under the name of the Elder, and although he himself was not very learned, he was a friend of education and art. A portrait of this uncrowned ruler of Florence, painted by the artist Pontormo, hangs in the famous Uffizi Gallery. Cosimo de' Medici is depicted in a calm pose. He sits in an armchair with his arms folded and his slightly bowed head turned sideways to the viewer. There is nothing ceremonial or theatrical about the head of the Medici family: he is wearing a plain red robe with a blank collar and spacious sleeves. The portrait depicts a thin and middle-aged man, on whose intelligent and energetic face sadness is visible, and whose fingers are tightly clenched. It seems that he is full of thoughts and worries, and his life is far from serenity and bliss. The grain of the Uffizi Gallery was compiled in the 15th century precisely under this man - Cosimo de Medici the Elder, who was also called the "father of the Fatherland." He was the first of the Medici who, with his own money, began to purposefully collect paintings and sculptures to decorate both his own palaces and the city. His successors subsequently followed his example, enriching the collection. The foundation of the gallery was laid by Francis I, who received from the Pope Pius V 26 ancient statues, recognized by the pope as obscene for the Vatican. At first, all the collections were in the Medici family castle - the Palazzo Riccardi, but in the era of turbulent historical events, many of the collected treasures died or fell into the wrong hands. As an architect, Cosimo invited Giorgio Vasari, allowing him to demolish the old quarters near Piazza della Signoria, and use the fragments of the destroyed stone buildings in construction. The work was carried out hastily, but neither Cosimo nor Vasari saw the finished building. Construction was completed in 1580; the Uffizi building had a long U-shape, leaving a narrow facade to the river. It was not entirely original, having included several early buildings. These include the Church of San Pietro Sceragio and the Mint, which minted the first gold florins in 1252. The design work in the Uffizi was carried out by well-known artists (including Allori, Bizzelli and Pieroni). A hanging garden was laid out above the loggia dei Lanzi, and a theater was set up on the second floor. The construction of the palace began in 1560 by the architect Giorgio Vasari for Cosimo I de Medici as a meeting place for the Florentine magistrate, hence the name - ufizzi, which means office. Construction was completed in 1581. Vasari, by the way, was not only an architect, but also an artist, so he emphasized the perspective of the length of the corridor, decorating the facade with long roof cornices. Years passed, the palace became a favorite place for the demonstration of paintings and sculptures collected by the Medici family or repurchased by them. After the decline of the Medici house, artistic gems remained in Florence, forming one of the first modern museums. The gallery has been open to the public since the sixteenth century, but it was officially opened to the public only in 1765, since the last representative of the Medici family gave it entirely to the people of Florence. The basis of the museum's collection are works of art commissioned or acquired by members of the Medici family. So, for example, Ferdinando I bought the Medici Venus at one time, the most famous statue in the collection of sculptures available in the Uffizi Gallery. He also moved here all the treasures from his Roman villa. Ferdinand II added to the collection a collection of paintings he had inherited. Cardinal Leopoldo also contributed to the creation of the museum with a magnificent collection of drawings and self-portraits by various artists. In 1737, after the death of the last Medici, all these treasures became the property of the city of Florence.
In the 18th century, the Uffizi Gallery became a public museum. In the 1730s, a group of scientists compiled a detailed (ten-volume) inventory of the works of art stored here. In 1769, the museum acquired its first director. The new administration made vigorous efforts, trying to collect the masterpieces belonging to the Medici dynasty scattered in different villas. The writer Madame de Stael, who visited the gallery in 1807, noted: “The attitude towards the fine arts in Florence is very democratic. In general, each member of the Medici family made a huge contribution to the Uffizi Gallery. In particular, Leopold took up the collection of self-portraits - his main supplier was the Academy of St. Luke, where he acquired many paintings. The wisdom of the Medici family consisted in a fair assessment of art: they acquired not only paintings by old masters, but also gave great influence to their contemporaries. It is known that the abbeys, where there were worthy collections, themselves informed the dukes about the presence of masterpieces and readily sold them. The Medici also patronized many artists. The huge collection of objects in the Uffizi Gallery was the reason that large-scale works, such as statues, were transferred to other Florentine museums (Bargello and others). As part of the expansion of the museum in 2006, additional premises were opened, and the exposition area increased from 6 thousand square meters to 13, allowing visitors to see firsthand what was previously only in the vaults.
In the 18th century, the Uffizi Gallery became a public museum. In the 1730s, a group of scientists compiled a detailed (ten-volume) inventory of the works of art stored here. In 1769, the museum acquired its first director. The new administration made energetic efforts, trying to collect the masterpieces belonging to the Medici dynasty scattered over different villas. Giotto, Botticelli, Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Michelangelo (it is in the Uffizi that the famous tondo with the image of the Holy Family is stored - the only major painting work of the frantic sculptor outside the Sistine Chapel ), Caravaggio, Titian ... Not to mention the magnificent examples of the art of Antiquity, as well as the works (the best works!) of French, German Dutch, Flemish artists ... The best artists, the best works.
In 1993, a bomb exploded on Via dei Georgofili, which damaged part of the palace, and also brought death to five people. The most significant damage was done to the Niobe Hall, whose neoclassical decor and classical sculptures were restored, and most of the frescoes are subject to restoration. The reason for this act of vandalism has remained unclear, it is attributed to the activities of the Italian mafia.

Brunswick Monogrammist

On the first floor there is a collection of portraits of old and modern masters, painted by themselves. The basis of this precious collection was laid by Cardinal Leopold Medici, who bought up most of the portraits at the Academy of St. Luke in Rome, and then acquired portraits of ancient masters and artists of his time. Thus, a wonderful collection of portraits of Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Giulio Romano, Veronese, Tintoretto, Titian and other masters of painting was formed. Of the foreign artists, Albrecht Durer, Rubens, Rembrandt, Van Dyck, Velasquez and other painters are represented here. In the Uffizi Gallery, next to their portraits, there is also a “Self-Portrait” by Karl Bryullov. Even before Petersburg, his painting “The Last Day of Pompeii” made a big splash in Italy, where the historical painter Kommuchi and the English writer Walter Scott went crazy over it, and where Bryullov himself was given royal honors. To get to the Gallery proper, one has to climb a wide but rather steep staircase to the top floor. In a long row of halls are placed world-famous collections of paintings, statues, bronzes, cameos, coins, medals, drawings and prints from different centuries. In the first part of the huge corridor, which embraces the entire museum on three sides, there is a series of extremely curious paintings.

Maria Teresa Valabridge

Here are works of imitative icon painting of the Middle Ages, and a number of gloomy solemn Madonnas on a golden background, in red and blue clothes and with big eyes ... In the same corridor, the 15th century is richly represented - both the best masters and secondary artists. In the middle of the corridor is a gently opening door, upholstered in cloth and leather. It leads to the famous Tribuna, the central part of the museum. This not very large room is illuminated from above, and contains the most precious sculptures of the Gallery and paintings from various countries, schools and times.

1508. Knight and squire On the first floor there is a collection of portraits of old and modern masters, painted by themselves. The basis of this precious collection was laid by Cardinal Leopold Medici, who bought up most of the portraits at the Academy of St. Luke in Rome, and then acquired portraits of ancient masters and artists of his time. Thus, a wonderful collection of portraits of Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Giulio Romano, Veronese, Tintoretto, Titian and other masters of painting was formed. Of the foreign artists, Albrecht Durer, Rubens, Rembrandt, Van Dyck, Velasquez and other painters are represented here.
In the Uffizi Gallery, next to their portraits, there is also a “Self-Portrait” by Karl Bryullov. Even before Petersburg, his painting “The Last Day of Pompeii” made a big splash in Italy, where the historical painter Kommuchi and the English writer Walter Scott went crazy over it, and where Bryullov himself was given royal honors. To get to the Gallery proper, one has to climb a wide but rather steep staircase to the top floor. In a long row of halls are placed world-famous collections of paintings, statues, bronzes, cameos, coins, medals, drawings and prints from different centuries. In the first part of the huge corridor, which embraces the entire museum on three sides, there is a series of extremely curious paintings. Here are works of imitative icon painting of the Middle Ages, and a number of gloomy solemn Madonnas on a golden background, in red and blue clothes and with big eyes ... In the same corridor, the 15th century is richly represented - both the best masters and secondary artists. In the middle of the corridor is a gently opening door, upholstered in cloth and leather. It leads to the famous Tribuna, the central part of the museum. This not very large room is illuminated from above, and contains the most precious sculptures of the Gallery and paintings from various countries, schools and times.
Venus flaunts in the middle of the Tribune, gracefully frank in her graceful nakedness. Everything is simple and sweet in her: both delicate features and a delicate body. She is alien to the stately pride of the goddess, and the coquetry inherent in the representatives of the cutesy human society. This young beautiful woman is “completely mortal”, but she is surrounded by fauns who have come from the mythological world, irresistibly indulging in a cheerful dance, the charming Apollo, who attracts with the softness and freshness of youthful forms. Only the gloomy figure of a slave sternly sharpening a knife, although excellently executed, is a dissonance to this lively and joyful ensemble.
In the Tribune, visitors can see two Venuses by Titian. One, by the will of the author, embodies the ideal beauty of the female body: it is brilliant, but cold. The other, with a rare richness and combination of colors, can be called the "historical genre". There is evidence that under the guise of the goddess of beauty, Titian portrayed Eleanor Gonzaga, the wife of the Duke of Urbino Federigo da Montefeltre, “the most beautiful woman in all of Italy.” The Uffizi Gallery houses one of the most famous paintings in the world - "The Birth of Venus" by Sandro Botticelli, according to the Russian philosopher N. Berdyaev, "the most beautiful, exciting, poetic Renaissance artist and the most painful ...".
For as long as he can remember, Botticelli was deeply unhappy and happy at the same time. He was, as they say, not of this world. Dreamily shy, illogical in actions and fantastic in judgments. He believed in insights and did not worry about wealth. He didn't build his own house, didn't make a family. But he was very happy that he was able to capture manifestations of beauty in his paintings. He turned life into art, and art became a true life for him, it was in the artist’s paintings that “love and passion overwhelmed”. More than a sunbeam, Botticelli trusted the beam of his eye, and his brush was precise and firm. Like Petrarch and Dante, he is attracted, deceived and inspired by the Image. This is the image of a young, beautiful girl, beloved of another person (Giuliano Medici). She is Beauty herself, the queen of omnipotent art. And that is why, with such painful passion, Botticelli warms his hands at someone else's fire. And that is why it says about Simonetta Vespucci that "no woman has ever been said." Botticelli creates a banner for Giuliano de' Medici when he participates in a jousting tournament. Pallas Athena is depicted on the banner, but everyone is well aware that this is Giuliano's beloved Simonetta, a beauty in a white dress. But life destroys beauty, fate pursues love, Simonetta dies of consumption. Her death is a deep grief for Botticelli, a host of torment and suffering. In an effort to weaken them, the artist captures everything and captures Simonetta Vespucci in his paintings. He dresses her in beautiful clothes, humiliates her braid of “copper” hair with pearls, carefully draws a slightly snub-nosed nose, marks on her lips a mysterious smile of seduction and a mysterious dream. Her high forehead seems to him the forehead of a seer, and a childishly touching expression on her face and eyes radiating hope evoke awe of tenderness.

Everyone who watches The Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli experiences an indescribable charm. Look at this Venus, this shy girl, in whose eyes some kind of bright sadness wanders. The rhythm of the composition is present in the whole picture - both in the bend of the young body, and the strands of hair, so beautifully torn to the wind, and in the general consistency of her hands, in the set foot, in the turn of the head and in the figures that surround her. In many paintings by Sandro Botticelli, this chaste-naked woman reigns, woven from the rhythms of soft lines, bashfully covering her chest and bosom ...
Pictures are hung on all eight walls of the Tribuna. Raphael is represented here by the "Madonna with the Goldfinch" - a picture that touches the heart with an ingenuous, but high spiritual charm. Pure as a girl, a woman-mother, who has not yet fully revealed herself as a woman, illuminates you with the quiet radiance of a bright morning. The whole spring landscape of the field dotted with flowers corresponds to its image. And the image of the Florentine Cathedral with distant blue mountains gives the whole picture the character of intimacy.


Next to the "Madonna with a Goldfinch" exhibited two more works by Raphael - "John the Baptist" and "Portrait of Pope Julius II".


The Holy Family by Michelangelo is exhibited in the same room. It is said that the customer accepted this painting with hesitation. Indeed, this whimsical work of the "titan of the Renaissance" seems completely alien to the religious content. The Tribune also contains several paintings on the theme of the Adoration of the Magi. Artists loved this biblical story, many turned to it more than once. The gospel story about the offering of gifts by the three wise men to the newborn Christ was used by some to show the festive spectacle of a richly dressed crowd; others saw it as an opportunity to show the world of human experience. In Sandro Botticelli, for example, the picture is built in such a way that in the groupings, movements and gestures of the figures crowding around Mary with the baby, the most diverse shades of living feeling are visibly conveyed - from calm, almost cold curiosity to stormy excitement and manifestations of ardent love. The Uffizi Gallery also exhibits the Adoration of the Magi, painted by Leonardo da Vinci and painted by Ghirlandaio.


Duke and Duchess of Urbino. Piero della Francesca
The Uffizi Gallery has the world's richest collection of Italian paintings from the 13th-18th centuries. (The works of the Venetian and Florentine schools are especially well represented). Fine examples of antique, French, German, Dutch, Dutch and Flemish art are presented. The collection of self-portraits of European artists located in the Uffizi is also unique. Portrait of Ferdinand Magellan by an unknown author, 17th century Bondone (Ognissanti Madonna, 1310), Simone Martini (Annunciation, 1333), Paolo Uccello (Battle of San Romano, middle part of Bernardino della Charda falls from a horse, 1450s), Piero della Francesco (Portrait of Duke Federico da Montefeltro and Duchess Battista of Urbino, 1465-1466), Fra Filippo Lippi (Madonna and Child with Two Angels, 1465), Sandro Botticelli (Spring, Birth of Venus, Adoration of the Magi) ), Hugo van der Goes (“Portinari Triptych”, 1476-1479), Leonardo da Vinci (“Annunciation”, 1472-1475, “Adoration of the Magi”, 1481), Piero di Cosimo (“Perseus Releasing Andromeda”, 1515) , Albrecht Durer ("The Adoration of the Magi", 1504), Michelangelo ("Tondo Doni", 1503), Raphael ("Pope Leo X with Cardinals Giulio de Medici and Luigi de Rossi, 1518-1519), Titian ("Venus of Urbino", 1538), Francesco Parmigianino ("Madonna with a long neck", 1534-1540), Caravaggio ("Bacchus", "The Sacrifice of Isaac", "Medusa"), Andrea Verrocchio ("The Baptism of Christ", 1472-1475).

In addition to the gallery, the Uffizi building also houses other important collections: the Contini Bonacossi collection, donated to the museum, a collection of prints and drawings containing almost 120,000 graphic works dating from the end of the 14th century to the present day, as well as the well-known "Vasari corridor" (built by Vasari in 1565), connecting the Uffizi with the Pitti Palace and containing a significant collection of 17th century paintings and the famous collection of self-portraits Maesta. Giotto
Annunciation. Simone Martini Site materials used

In the wonderful city of Florence there are many that delight the eyes of tourists, and also cherish their sense of beauty. One of these structures - the Uffizi Gallery (Galleria degli Uffizi) - is located in the center of Florence between Signoria Square (Piazza della Signoria) and the bridge (Ponte Vecchio), voluntarily and involuntarily attracting numerous tourists, ranging from those who accidentally wandered here to those who came to this amazing city specifically in order to fully enjoy the masterpieces of world fine art exhibited here.

The Uffizi Gallery, which covers a total area of ​​13,000 square meters, provides the eyes of ordinary tourists and true connoisseurs of art with one of the most important and largest collections, which covers the works of both Italian and foreign artists who worked from the 13th to the 18th centuries.

In the museum you can personally enjoy the creations of such world-famous masters as (Michelangelo), (Leonardo da Vinci), Sandro Botticelli (Sandro Botticelli), (Rafael), Rubens (Rubens), Rembrandt (Rembrandt) and many others. By the way, the Uffizi Gallery can rightly be called one of the oldest museums in the world, which was opened to visitors almost immediately after its construction in the 16th century.

Gallery history

The most famous gallery in Italy is located in a massive building, the project of which belongs to a talented architect (Giorgio Vasari). The construction of the Uffizi Gallery began as early as 1560 by personal order, but the representative of the dynasty was never able to see it in finished form: the construction of the building was completed twenty years later, after the death of Cosimo.

It is worth noting that in order to complete the architectural project, the specialists had to demolish the old quarters and disassemble the nearby medieval buildings.

However, when the Uffizi Gallery was fully completed, it became clear that all the sacrifices were not in vain. One of the most imposing museums in the country is located in Piazza della Signoria in the shape of the Latin letter "U", surrounded by hanging gardens and an art gallery. The author of the project, Vasari, was a true connoisseur of art, so he took care of the special design where the canvases should have been located.

Dozens of years after the start of the grandiose construction, the Medici family could finally bring their pride here - a unique collection of paintings and sculptures collected from all over the world. It was to Florence that the representatives of the great dynasty sent all their masterpieces of art. The Medicis paid special attention to the artist Sandro Botticelli, who, according to historians, was very friendly with a famous family.

The Uffizi Gallery to this day houses his rare creations. The museum houses one of his most famous creations - "The Birth of Venus" (Nascita di Venere), which joined the ranks of the masterpieces exhibited here only in the middle of the 19th century. One can talk about the variety of beautiful paintings painted by the most famous artists in the history of mankind and exhibited in the Uffizi for a long time.

However, it is worth noting that the jewel of the entire collection is the Venus de Medici.

It will take more than one day to inspect the numerous paintings. Fortunately, all the works stored here are located in more than 50 rooms in chronological order. It is thanks to this wise organization that you will be able to trace how art developed from the 13th to the 18th centuries and the styles of painting and sculpture changed from the Byzantine period to the Baroque.

As soon as you cross the threshold of the museum, you find yourself at a real crossroads: three vestibules lead from the entrance to the museum. The first contains busts of marble and porphyry, the second is decorated by Giovanni da San Giovanni, the third contains Roman statues and sarcophagi. The Uffizi Gallery simply captivates not only with the art objects exhibited here. What is the interior decoration of one of the most visited galleries in Europe!

Helpful information

Tickets

By the way, millions of tourists visit this Florentine landmark every year. And you can be one of those lucky ones!

• From March 1, 2019 to October 31, 2019 the cost of a full ticket to the Uffizi: 20 € + 4 € pre-booking fee. Prices may increase during exhibitions.
• From November 1, 2019 to February 28, 2020, the cost of a full ticket to the Uffizi: 12 € + 4 € for pre-booking. However, please note that the box office closes at 18:05.
• Official online cash desks: webshop.b-ticket.com
  Checked reliable agencies for buying tickets at the last moment: www.tiqets.com and www.getyourguide.ru - they usually take a small commission, but there, even in the high season, there are quotas.
• Group tour for 1.5 hours costs 57 euros / person, tickets included, conducted in English, Italian, Spanish, German or French.
• If you go to the Uffizi in Russian with a guide ITALY FOR ME, he will help you make a reservation, pay for tickets on the spot.

To avoid many hours of waiting in line at the museum itself, you can book tickets in Italian at +39 055 294883 (reservation fee 4 euros). It is most convenient to visit this Florentine landmark after 2 pm, when all school excursions end

Address and opening hours

The Uffizi Gallery is located at Piazzale degli Uffizi, 6, Firenze, Italy and can be accessed any day except Monday and May 1, from 8:15 to 18:50.

How to get there

You can get to the Uffizi Gallery by public transport (the C1 stop Galleria Degli Uffizi - Farmacia Logge is located next to it) or walk if you are already in the city center. By the way, if you still feel energized after visiting the beautiful gallery, take a look at the nearby attractions of Florence: and Bargello Palace (Bargello).

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Rich in sights of world importance. The whole atmosphere is saturated with history, the great masters of the Renaissance used to walk here. The paths of Michelangelo and Leonardo could cross on the streets of Florence (such a meeting could easily end in a temperamental skirmish, the artists clashed, and only time could reconcile them). Dante liked to meditate on a stone that once stood on Duomo Square (unfortunately, this boulder has not been preserved, which is a pity, but everyone here knows the place where it stood). Savonarol's sermons also took place in these streets.

The real pearl of Florence is the Uffizi Gallery, which has collected many great masterpieces of art.

Florence and her patrons

Florence, unlike many ancient cities, has always been built according to a plan; randomness is initially alien to this city. The constant improvement of buildings, streets and squares has become the goal of many creators of architectural ensembles. Of course, such an attitude to the appearance of the city is not without serious material costs, but money, as a rule, was not the issue. The richest Florentine families Alberti, Strozzi and many others did not spare gold, trying to create a beautiful frame for this pearl of Tuscany, and at the same time immortalize their names.

The Medici, whose forefathers were physicians, became prosperous bankers in the mid-fifteenth century. Their donations were especially generous, and the collection of paintings and sculpture formed the basis of the future great museum, which Italy is proud of. The Uffizi Gallery was founded by the Medici.

Construction of the city administration building

In 1559, one of the I (Senior), ruling the city at that time, decided to create a centralized governing body and gather the entire administration in one building. He was not a very learned man, although he sincerely revered art, but he came to the idea of ​​creating a gallery later.

It is interesting that the sculptures that marked the beginning of the collection were rejected by the Vatican, and therefore donated by Pius V. The claims of the church leadership were not the artistic merit of the works, but the fact that the statues depicted naked characters, it seemed sinful. At first, all these treasures were kept in the family in the Riccardi Palace, which served as the Medici family castle.

Meanwhile, in 1560, the design of a spacious palazzo began, entrusted to the famous architect Vasari. The demolition of many buildings was supposed, and their fragments were allowed to be used to build a new palace. The word "Uffii" is translated from Italian as "offices" (in the plural).

Architectural projects

The case dragged on, in 1574 the master died, and Buontalenti had to complete the construction, who completed the task a year later. By this time, the purpose of the building had already changed, but the name remained the same, the Uffizi Gallery. Florence was enriched by the works created by the great masters and collected by the Medici family, but at first only representatives of the nobility could enjoy them. For ten years, the building continued to be completed, eventually the palace turned out to be horseshoe-shaped in plan, with a view of the river from the windows of the narrow side. The architects did not raise their hand to destroy some ancient buildings (the old Mint and the Cathedral of San Pietro Sceragio), and they entered the general ensemble. At that time, both structures were already four centuries old.

Gallery formation

Already by the end of construction, Vasari (and he was an artist, and not just an architect) was aware that he was building not a palace for the city administration, but a gallery. The Uffizi was opened in the sixteenth century, and the architect's perspective decisions contributed to the most favorable lighting conditions for the future exhibition. In 1737, according to the will of Cardinal Leopoldo, the last of the Medici family, the entire family collection became the property of the city of Florence. A century later, the museum became public. At the same time, in the thirties of the eighteenth century, the first inventory of the collection was compiled, which occupied ten volumes.

self-portraits

The Uffizi Gallery has collected many self-portraits, both ancient and modern, which can be used to study eras. The basis of this collection was a series of works bought by Leopold de' Medici, who served as a cardinal, from the Roman Academy of St. Luke, and then it was regularly replenished. The first floor of the building became the place of the portrait painting exposition. Thanks to this collection, modern people can get an idea of ​​​​the appearance and characters of the great painters, Italian (including da Vinci, Titian, Veronese, Romano, Raphael, Michelangelo) and from other countries (Dürer, Rembrandt, Rubens, Velasquez, Van Dyck and Karl Bryullov ). By the way, about Bryullov. His admirers were Walter Scott and Commuci, they admired The Last Day of Pompeii, a painting that made a splash in Italy even before the triumph in St. Petersburg.

But there are also Giotto, and Caravaggio, and many other glorious names ...

Tribune of the Uffizi

There is a special door in the gallery, upholstered in leather and cloth, leading to the central exposition, called the Tribune. The hall is not very large, illuminated by a glass lantern in the roof and contains the most outstanding works, including sculptures and paintings from different eras and schools. In the center of the eight-walled room stands Venus surrounded by dancing fauns and Apollo. There is also a sculpture of a stern slave sharpening a knife. Two more Venuses, this time picturesque, belong to the brush of Titian. It is believed that the Tribune contains the best that the Uffizi Gallery has to offer: Raphael's paintings "Madonna with a Goldfinch", "Portrait of Pope Julius II" and "John the Baptist". Here is the "Birth of Venus" by Botticelli, and several works that reveal the biblical theme of the worship of the Magi (Ghirlandaio and Leonardo da Vinci), but the real gem is the "Holy Family" of the titan of the Renaissance by Michelangelo.

Uffizi losses

Italy has experienced many upheavals and wars over the centuries, in which not only people died, but also works of art. Many times the Uffizi Gallery also suffered losses. Florence was in the path of the Napoleonic armies. The collection was damaged and partially looted during the hostilities that took place in 1943, when the Nazis occupied the country, trying to prevent the advance of the Allied forces. Then, after the explosion of the city water supply, the lower floor was partially flooded. The terrorists who killed five people with a bomb in 1993 and damaged the priceless works of art in the Niobe Hall added trouble. Some frescoes could not be restored.

Before visiting this wonderful collection, it is useful to get some information about what the rules are and where the Uffizi Gallery is located. Photography and filming in the halls, as in most museums, is prohibited. This is not a whim of the administration, but a completely rational measure required to ensure the safety of the paintings. The day off here is Monday, on any other days the doors are friendly open from half past nine in the morning until seven in the evening, but it’s better to come early, there are many visitors, and queues form, which will take at least an hour (and sometimes much longer). There are fewer people in winter. The entrance ticket costs 9 euros and 10 cents, but on the birthday everyone can enter for free. The same applies to the beautiful half of humanity, but only on March 8 (it is also celebrated here).

You should not take any drinks with you, they will not let you in. Offers of skip-the-line excursions from some enterprising guides should be ignored. The group gathers for a long time, and it will take no less time than standing in line, and the costs will increase significantly. It’s better to book your visit on the Internet, you will have to wait only twenty minutes, the extra charge is 4 euros, but you can’t be late.

It is best to leave a backpack at the hotel, they will not let you in with it, and the queue for storage is almost the same as for a ticket. The Uffizi Gallery kindly offers for 8 euros a very handy thing called an audio guide. To take it, you need a deposit, any document with a photo.

And don't aim to see everything in one visit. It's just not possible. If there is not enough time for a multiple visit, it is better to focus on the most interesting direction in art, the Uffizi Gallery is rich in them. Reviews of acquaintances and friends who have been here will help in this.

How to find?

The museum complex is easy to find, it is enough for any local passer-by to say two words: “Uffizi Gallery”. The address is simple, Uffizi Square, Uffizi Palace. In fact, it is correct to say three words in Italian: “Galleria degli Uffizi”, but they will understand it that way. It is in the very center of the city, on the one hand the Ponte Vecchio bridge, on the other Piazza Senoria. The largest is located on the Arno River.

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One of the oldest and most visited museums in the world. And, of course, one of the most famous. And given that small groups are allowed inside, the queues at the box office are huge and at any time. The museum is located in the center of Florence, between the river and.

The Uffizi Gallery in Florence has a unique collection of art, mostly from the Renaissance. The gallery's collection contains paintings by the most famous Italian artists, including the names Botticelli, Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Titian, Giotto, Caravaggio. Among the masterpieces of the exhibition - " Birth of Venus» Botticelli (see above), which became a symbol of Italian painting of the 15th century, « Ubrinsky diptych" by Pierro della Francesco (see below) - one of the most significant portraits of the Renaissance, A separate room (No. 15) is dedicated to the works of Leonardo da Vinci, among which - " Baptism of Christ" And " Annunciation«.

Note: First Sunday of every month admission to the Uffizi Gallery is free.

Visit to the Uffizi Gallery:

The Uffizi Gallery is the most famous and most popular museum in Florence, so you can lose a lot of time in the queue for tickets. You can avoid wasting time in the queue in the hot Tuscan sun if you buy a ticket online (but you have to pay a little more - 5.99 €, and 10.00 €). You cannot book a ticket for the "free" day (the first Sunday of each month) - at this time the entrance to the entrance is carried out on a first-come, first-served basis (which are even longer these days!).

Ticket prices for the Uffizi Gallery:

If the gallery hosts a temporary exhibition, then the cost of visiting the temporary exhibition is added to any ticket. Additional fees cannot be avoided.

Official rate for tickets to the gallery:

• Full fare - € 8.00
• Concessionary (Europeans 18 - 25 years old) - € 4.00
• Free - under 18s

From September 26, 2016 to January 8, 2017 - there will be a temporary exhibition, so the ticket will cost 12.50 € (full) or 6.25 € (reduced).

Online pre-order rates(+surcharge, which differs depending on the site):

• Standard rate - 12.00 €
• Temporary exhibitions - +4.50 €
• Audio guide - 7.53 €
• Free for all under 18s.
• Reduced ticket - for EU citizens from 18 to 25 years old.

Opening hours of the Uffizi Gallery:

• Tuesday - Sunday 8:15 - 18:50
• Monday - closed
• Closed: January 1st, May 1st, December 25th.
• Holidays are usually open. If the holiday coincides with Monday, then the administration itself decides whether to open the museum or not, depending on the number of visitors.
• Ticket offices close at 18:05. At 18:35, visitors are asked to turn around and proceed to the exit.
• From March 31 to September 27, the Uffizi Gallery is open until 22:00. Ticket offices - until 21:05, everything starts to close at 21:35.

UFFICI GALLERY

Direct-Media, Moscow, 2016

Foreword

In the middle of the 16th century, the glory of Florence as a city in which the High Renaissance flourished became a legendary past. But, as you know, a holy place is never empty: the local artistic life has not disappeared, it has only taken a different form. Art has flowed into the museum. However, the then Florentine ruler had an idea to expand his residence. It turned out that he was fulfilling the will of fate, and she wanted one of the most famous museums in the world to appear in Florence ...

By the time in question the Medici had established dominion over all of Tuscany. Cosimo I, a representative of the younger branch of the Medici family, decided to build a building where all state institutions would be concentrated. Hence the name - "Uffizi", or, in modern terms, "offices". But Florence was lucky: the family of bankers and merchants that ruled it was distinguished by two features - from generation to generation the Medici passed on a love of art and patronized artists for a long time. Sometimes they themselves became artists, in a broad sense. By the middle of the 16th century, the Medici had amassed a good collection, which, among other things, contained many works of art, and from the very beginning they decided to give part of the premises in the Uffizi to store it.

Giorgio Vasari, a man of various talents (he was also a painter and art historian), was invited as the architect of the planned building. And in 1560, between Signoria Square and the Arno River, the construction of a U-shaped building began. It was supposed to consist of two wings and a transition between them. But the ensemble also included buildings that already existed at the chosen site, including the Loggia dei Lanzi overlooking the square, which was intended for meetings and receptions.

The building turned out to be huge, and in order to diversify and at the same time unite it compositionally from the outside, Vasari came up with an architectural module that was repeated throughout the facade: a portico with pilasters on the sides - on the first floor and three windows above it - on the second. The part that connected both wings of the Uffizi was cut through by large through arches that filled the narrow space between the two wings with light. It also turned out to be an interestingly designed facade overlooking the Arno River. The Medici collections grew rapidly, so Cosimo's son Francesco I decided to expand the exhibition space in the Uffizi. He ordered to remove administrative institutions from the second floor of the building, and in their place to arrange halls for ancient statues. For them, Bernardo Buontalenti, who worked in the Uffizi after the death of Vasari, created a long gallery with vaults painted with "grotesques" - animal and plant ornaments. A similar ornament adorned Nero's "Golden House" - an ancient building, the ruins of which were discovered during the Renaissance. In addition, Buontalenti built the so-called Tribune - an octagonal hall with high windows, its prototype was the famous Tower of the Winds in Athens. This appeal to antiquity was also a kind of gathering.

During the time of Ferdinando I, who ruled after his brother Francesco, workshops of artists, sculptors, jewelers, gilders, stone carvers, miniaturists, and porcelain manufacturers appeared in the Uffizi. At the same time, the "Hall of Geographical Maps" was arranged, on the walls of which maps were drawn, and a globe was installed in the center, and the "Hall of Mathematics", where scientific instruments were placed. In other rooms, weapons and armor, engraved ornamental stones and portraits were exhibited. As you can see, the Medici collected everything that had artistic, historical or scientific value, or even just pleasing to the eye. Therefore, at first, the Uffizi combined an art gallery and a cabinet of curiosities.

One of the main events in the history of the nascent museum took place in 1591: the collection was opened to visitors from the highest circles of society. The Uffizi Gallery was actively replenished with works of art that were sent by members of the ruling family who lived outside of Florence, for example, the French queens Catherine and Maria Medici. From churches and monasteries, paintings began to be taken to the Uffizi, sometimes replacing them with copies.

But the first of the Medici, who began to collect paintings and drawings with skill, was Ferdinand's brother, Cardinal Leopoldo: well versed in art, he collected paintings and graphics so that certain art schools and periods were represented as fully as possible. During the reign of Leopoldo, collections of self-portraits, drawings, porcelain, medals, and bronzes were placed in the west wing. In addition, the Fonderia was opened in the Uffizi, where perfumes and medicines were made, and natural rarities were exhibited: rhinoceros horn, ostrich egg, embalmed animals.

In 1737, the last ruler of the Medici family, Gian Gastone, died. In the same year, his sister Anna-Maria signed a document according to which the Uffizi, with all the collections, departed from Florence and was declared a public museum, and not just “for its own”. Once Lorenzo the Magnificent Medici, one of the most famous ancestors of those who arranged this gallery, and the patron of art himself, wrote in his poem about the ideal ruler: “Wealth, splendor, everything that befits the Power, is not his, part of the people ... » And so it happened.

The first visitors, as they say, "from the street" appeared in the halls of the museum in 1769. Luigi Lanzi was appointed curator of the Uffizi Gallery, who set about putting the entire collection in order, in particular, placing the exhibited paintings according to chronology and painting schools. Then, under Ferdinand III of Lorraine, when Tommaso Puccini became the director of the museum (who saved masterpieces that the conquerors could take to Paris during the invasion of Italy), a glass roof was built in the Gallery so that natural light penetrated the rooms, and nameplates were placed near the paintings artists and dates of creation of works.

Already in the 19th century, it became clear that it was simply impossible to place everything that had been collected over the long years of its existence in one museum. It was decided to remove most of the ancient art, jewelry, scientific instruments, all weapons from the collection and create new museums on their basis. The Uffizi, on the other hand, has become an art gallery, which mainly stores paintings, and statues and works of arts and crafts accompany them.

A serious study of the paintings presented in the collection and their restoration began. The last premises, which were still occupied by some state institutions, were vacated and given over to exhibits.

In general, as the ancestors of the Italians - the ancient Romans, said, "vita brevis, ars longa", which means "life is short, art is eternal."

ART OF ANCIENT GREECE AND ANCIENT ROME

Venus Medici
CLEOMENE, SON OF APOLLODOR

This marble copy of a lost Greek original from the Hellenistic era was in the papal art collection in Rome and was acquired by the Medici collection, hence its name. The statue belongs to the type of "Aphrodite of Cnidus" or "Venus bashful", which covers her nakedness with her hands.

The beautiful flowering body of the goddess emerging from the sea foam is finely worked out by the sculptor. In the whole appearance of Venus, and not only in her gesture, one can feel a tremulous fright: she seemed to shrink slightly inside and stop. From the fact that the marble "flesh" expresses the state of the character, the sculpture seems to be alive, breathing. George Gordon Byron wrote in Childe Harold's Pilgrimage about this statue:

You look, you are unable to say goodbye to her,
You came to her - and there is no turning back!
In chains behind the triumphal chariot
Follow the arts, for you have been taken captive.

ART OF ANCIENT GREECE AND ANCIENT ROME:

• Torso of a centaur (Torso Gaddi)
• Portrait of Cicero

Torso of a centaur (Torso Gaddi)
1st century BC e. Marble. Height 153

A fragment of a statue depicting a centaur with hands clasped behind his back was owned by the Gaddi family, hence its name. This is an example of Hellenistic art, and it belongs to the so-called Pergamon school, the sculptors of which made the "Pergamon Altar" with its scenes of the battle of the gods and the titans.

The torso is full of power and at the same time worked out so much that the muscles “play” under the skin. A sharp turn of the body fills it with expressive movement, the waves of which are felt even at a distance. This sculpture influenced the young Michelangelo Buonarroti, an Italian sculptor and painter whose characters are distinguished by strong, muscular bodies.

Portrait of Cicero
Middle of the 1st century. Marble. Height 74

About Mark Tullius Cicero, a Roman philosopher, orator and politician who lived in the 2nd-1st centuries BC, Plutarch wrote: “At that time, when greed flourished ... Cicero gave clear evidence of his indifference to gain, his humanity and integrity” .

The commitment of Roman sculptors to realism helped the unknown master not only truthfully embody the appearance of Cicero, but also show the inner state of this person. The marble bust depicts him as middle-aged and tired, captured in a difficult period of his life. The forehead of Cicero, whom Plutarch describes as a cheerful man, is frowning here, his eyes are focused, and his lips are compressed. One gets the impression that he is having a dialogue within himself with an imaginary adversary, or maybe he is arguing with himself.

The type of sculptural bust, common in Roman art of that time - rounded at the bottom, with a toga laid in various folds, on a round stand - helped to exalt the depicted, despite all the features of the person emphasized by the sculptor.

ITALIAN ART: BEFORE THE XVI CENTURY

Spring. Fragment
SANDRO BOTTICELLI
Around 1478. Tempera on wood. 203x314

The heyday of Sandro Botticelli's painting came at a time when he became close to the circle of humanists - poets, writers, philosophers, artists - at the Medici court. Lorenzo the Magnificent, ruler of Florence, wrote poetry and patronized the arts. For the villa of his cousin Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco Medici, this painting with a complex philosophical and poetic content was commissioned.

The "Spring" reflects three inseparable directions in which the art and philosophy of the Florentine humanists developed: ancient, Christian and courtly. From antiquity here are the characters and motifs of myths. On the right, Zephyr, a warm west wind, abducts Chloris, the Greek nymph of fields and flowers, who turns into Flora, depicted right there, already a Roman goddess, showering flowers on the earth. On the left side - three graces, personifying chastity, love and pleasure. Mercury, dispersing the clouds, standing under the canopy of orange trees, sends the viewer's imagination to the myth of Paris and his choice of the most beautiful of the goddesses, to whom he gave the apple as the winner. This goddess, Aphrodite, or as the ancient Romans called her, Venus, gently steps on the carpet of herbs and flowers in the center of the picture. Above her head is Cupid with a bow, aiming at one of the graces.

The Christian theme is manifested here in the fact that the main character resembles the Madonna, whose hand seems to bless everyone. In this heroine, the cult of the “beautiful lady”, the inspirer of poets, also shines through. These courtly sentiments flourished in the circle of Lorenzo the Magnificent. The painting was painted shortly after the death of the beloved brother Lorenzo, Giuliano de' Medici, the beautiful Simonetta Vespucci. Venus resembles her face. Mercury himself resembles Giuliano, in whom Saint Sebastian, the Christian martyr, is also recognized.

This work, in which a variety of motifs converged, marked an important turn towards painting, not subject to any canons. Only the soul of the artist and his will were already visible in it. Russian art critic Pavel Muratov wrote about Botticelli: "He was the first to meet the morning mist of a new and long day in the history of the world under the sole banner of pure art."

ITALIAN ART (BEFORE THE XVI CENTURY):

• Madonna and Child with Angels (Ognisanti Madonna). DUCCIO DI BUONINSEGNA
• Annunciation. SIMONE MARTINI
• Bringing to the temple. AMBROGIO LORENZETTI
• Adoration of the Magi. GENTILE DA FABRIANO
• Madonna and Child with Saint Anne and Angels. MASOLINO DA PANICALE,
  MASACCIO
  
• Coronation of Mary. FRA BEATO ANGELICO
• Battle of San Romano. PAOLO UCCELLO
• Triptych with the Adoration of the Magi, Circumcision and Ascension. ANDREA MANTENA
• Hercules and Hydra. ANTONIO POLLAIOLO
• Portraits of Federico da Montefeltro Urbinsky and Battista Sforza. PIERO DELLA FRANCESCA
• Baptism of Christ. ANDREA VERROCCHIO, LEONARDO DA VINCI
• Adoration of the Magi. LEONARDO DA VINCI
• Annunciation. LEONARDO DA VINCI
• Adoration of the Magi. SANDRO BOTTICELLI
• Birth of Venus. SANDRO BOTTICELLI
• Madonna and Child with Angels (Madonna del Magnificat). SANDRO BOTTICELLI
• sacred allegory. GIOVANNI BELLINI
• Pieta. PIETRO PERUGHINO

Madonna and Child with Angels (Madonna Rucellai)
DUCCIO DI BUONINSEGNA
1285. Wood, tempera. 450x290

Duccio di Buonisegna, an artist from the city of Siena, brought decorativeness and elegance of French Gothic into the Byzantine style of writing, which reigned in contemporary Italian painting. This altarpiece was commissioned by the community of Mary for the chapel in the Florentine church of Santa Maria Novella, and in the 16th century it was transferred to another chapel, Rucellai, from which it got its current name.

The image of the Madonna and Child on a throne, placed on a golden background, follows the Byzantine tradition. But the brightness of colors, their festivity, as well as the whimsical lines of the robe of the Mother of God, especially the golden border on Her cloak, are the result of a “Gothic influence”. And in the appearances of all the characters presented here, up to the angels, carefully lowering the throne from heaven, one can feel new trends of more realistic painting for that time. Duccio's art, albeit cautiously, already foreshadowed the Renaissance.

Madonna and Child with Angels (Ognisanti Madonna)
GIOTTO (GIOTTO DI BONDONE)
Around 1306–1310. Wood, tempera. 325x204

This large altarpiece by Giotto, depicting the Virgin and Child surrounded by angels and saints (“ognisanti” in Italian means “all saints”), is made in the tradition of the 11th-13th centuries. Then Italian painting was under strong Byzantine influence, but the artist brought something completely new to the medieval pictorial canon.

The Madonna sits on the throne not strictly in the center and is depicted half-turned. Giotto painted her figure in such a way that it looks majestic and voluminous, this is emphasized by the plastic folds of the robe. The conditional golden background, symbolizing heaven, is combined here with the depth of space, expressed through the architecture of the throne - its steps and canopy. The master also focused on the emotions of the characters, depicting angels and saints reverently raising their heads and looking at the Mother of God with the Child with spiritual awe.

Annunciation
SIMONE MARTINI
1333. Wood, tempera. 265х305

In the work of Simone Martini, a representative of the Sienese school, the features of late Gothic, with its decorative effect and elongated graceful bodies, were combined with the features of Proto-Renaissance painting.

The "Annunciation" the artist wrote for the altar of St. Ansania in the Cathedral of Siena. The figure of Mary looms against a golden background, symbolizing the sky, in a restrained, smooth silhouette. The whimsical shape of the figure of the archangel Gabriel - his still flying wings, a cloak fluttering behind - brings a feeling of air and wind into the room. From the heavenly messenger to Mary in the picture come the words from the Gospel: “Rejoice, full of grace, the Lord is with you” (Luke 1:28), and this thin ligature looks like part of the ornament that lines and colors form. Here everything caresses the eye: bright angel wings, and white lilies standing in a vase - a symbol of Mary's purity and purity, and lines, and a combination of colors in the picture.

The images in the central scene are fragile, incorporeal, as if fanned by mountain air. Compared to them, St. Ansanias and St. Julitta, depicted in the side parts of the altar, are written out in more volume, which led the researchers to think if they were the work of Lippo Memmi, whose signature is also under the picture. However, the artist’s student most likely only gilded the frame, and Martini painted the saints himself and depicted them more vividly in order to emphasize the unearthly spirit of the scene presented.

Bringing to the temple
AMBROGIO LORENZETTI
1342. Wood, tempera. 257x168

The master from Siena Ambrogio Lorenzetti created this altar, from which only the central part has come down to us, for the Siena Cathedral.

The Gothic interior of the church - Lorenzetti's action takes place in the cathedral for which the altar was intended - is combined with the "ancient" sculptures on the facade, for example, with winged geniuses supporting the garland. The solemnity of the scene is emphasized by the bright, sonorous colors of the clothes and architectural elements, and detailed details are wonderfully in harmony with this high harmony - the robe of the high priest, the sacrificial doves in his hand, the capitals of the columns, the mosaic decorating the church.

Elder Simeon holds the Christ Child in his arms and prophesies about Him with trepidation, while Mary, hearing his words, is sad and self-absorbed. All other characters who listen to the elder are also endowed with their own emotions. This desire to express the feelings of those depicted, to write their figures in sufficient volume was an undoubted sign of the approaching Renaissance.

Adoration of the Magi
GENTILE DA FABRIANO
1423. Wood, tempera. 303x282

The painting of Gentile da Fabriano represents such a trend in European art as international gothic. The altar "Adoration of the Magi" was created by the master for the Strozzi Chapel of the Church of Santa Trinita in Florence.

A crowded colorful procession is depicted moving towards the foreground of the picture. The gospel story about the kings who came to worship the Christ Child is interpreted here in the spirit of a medieval chivalric novel: a servant ties up a spur to one of the Magi, which emphasizes that his master belongs to chivalry, hunting scenes are interspersed in the picture, and the manner of many characters can be defined by the word “courtly” - just look, for example, at the maids on the left. This work is interesting to consider, because it is full of marvelous details, for example, the Infant Christ strokes the head of an elderly sorcerer who kisses His foot. Among those who came from afar, there is just no one - young and old, knights and hunters. In the picture there are not only people, but also animals - a lion, a cheetah, monkeys, a falcon. It seems that the artist also used the plot in order to depict the richness of the world he knew.

This altar image is written in pure, shining, like jewels, colors, and its decorative effect is enhanced by gold interspersed here and there. The frame was made according to the drawing of the master himself, who included small images in it and thought out the decor to the smallest detail. The predella of the altar consists of three pictorial parts representing the Nativity of Christ, the Flight into Egypt and the Bringing to the Temple. Art historian Viktor Lazarev wrote: “In his altar image, the most beautiful and festive painting of the early Quattrocento, Gentile depicted the feudal world leaving the historical stage in all its brilliance, with all its outwardly attractive features, in the halo of its “chivalric romance”.”

Madonna and Child with Saint Anne and Angels
MASOLINO DA PANICALE,
MASACCIO (TOMMASO DI GIOVANNI DI SIMONE CASSAI)
Around 1425. Tempera on wood. 175x103

Masolino's brush in this work, made for the church of Sant'Ambrogio in Florence, belongs to the image of St. Anne and angels, and Masaccio - the Madonna and Child and an angel in green and red robes. The influence of medieval art can be seen here in the golden background, the curtain, the iconography of the entire scene - Mary sits in front of St. Anne with the little Christ on her knees, and angels placed on top of each other stand on the sides. But this is already a Renaissance work, especially where the brush of Masaccio worked, who was the first of those who can be fully attributed to the masters of the Renaissance. The figures painted by him are illuminated from the side and depicted with knowledge of the perspective, which the artist was studying. He stops his attention only on the main thing, therefore, in the created images there is power, which soon manifested itself in the murals made by the artist in Florentine churches. Masaccio did not live long, but managed to influence the entire Renaissance painting.

Coronation of Mary
FRA BEATO ANGELICO (FRA GIOVANNI DA FIESOLE)
1434–1435 Wood, tempera. 112x114

The painting of the early Renaissance artist, the Dominican monk Fra Angelico, is imbued with a state of quiet joy. The master’s multi-figured works are also filled with it, such as the “Coronation of Mary”, made for the church of Sant' Egidio in Florence.

Christ places a crown on the head of the Mother of God, the Queen of Heaven, the angels blow their trumpets, the saints reverently contemplate what is happening. The golden background, coming from the Byzantine tradition of depicting the heavens, is combined here with relief figures, and the spirit of the Middle Ages, still felt in this altar image, is combined with a complex composition already inherent in the Renaissance.

The coloring of the picture is best described by the words from Nikolai Gumilyov's poem about Fra Angelico:

And the colors, the colors are bright and clean,
They were born with it and died out with it.
There is a legend: he dissolved flowers
In bishops consecrated oil.

In the compositions of the predella, that is, located at the bottom of the main image, the artist presented the Betrothal of Mary and the Assumption of Mary, now stored in the San Marco Museum in Florence.

Battle of San Romano
PAOLO UCCELLO
Around 1438. Tempera on wood. 180x323

The presented painting by the Quattrocento artist Paolo Uccello is one of the three paintings he painted on this topic and stood at the origins of the battle genre in European art. All these works, commissioned by Leonardo Bartolini Salimbeni, who took part in the battle, depict the moments of the battle between the Florentines and the Sienese, which happened in 1432.

In the painting “The Battle of San Romano”, a Florentine knight with a spear knocks out the leader of the enemy army, Bernardino della Charda, from the saddle. Sitting on a white horse, the leader of the Florentines Niccolo da Tolentino has already knocked over one of the enemies to the ground. A battle is going on around, “horses and people mixed up in a bunch”, spears and crossbows are thrown up, knights and their weapons are flying to the ground. The tension of the whole scene is also given by the fact that many figures fit in a small space, moreover, the composition is deliberately cut off by a frame along the edges, which makes it seem that it is cramped within the allotted limits.

Uccello portrays his characters in a variety of poses. Probably, in order to practice this skill, he took up the job. The red horse on the left, galloping away, gray, with a knight who fell with him, white, on which the leader of the Florentines sits, show how the artist coped with complex angles and perspective. The dynamism of the whole scene is emphasized by the coloring in which bright, pure colors collide.

Triptych with the Adoration of the Magi, Circumcision and Ascension
ANDREA MANTENA
1460–1464 Wood, tempera. 86x161.5

Andrea Mantegna is an artist in whose painting, already several decades before the beginning of the High Renaissance, the approaching steps of this powerful art were felt.

The triptych was commissioned by the Margrave Ludovico Gonzaga for the chapel at his family palace in Mantua (the painter will work for this family for the rest of his life). The miniature writing of the altar image, the abundance of marvelous details, characteristic of the art of the Early Renaissance, are combined here with the power and monumentality that were already inherent in the next stage of Italian painting. As a result, a small picturesque altar makes the same impression as the wall paintings of Mantegna in the Gonzaga Palace. And at the same time, you want to look at the triptych like a jewel from a box.

In the central part, the artist presented a scene of worship of the Magi: among the rocky landscape he loved so much, a long procession of people in luxurious robes moves. They go to bow to the Child sitting on Mary's lap. Angels are flying around. The dry and bright writing of Mantegna makes the image literally shine also thanks to the special “air” in the paintings - completely transparent, rarefied, which can only be high in the mountains. Therefore, in the world created by the artist, everything is visible: the path in the distance, and the bright castle to which it leads, and the wool of the camel, and the tough grass, and the thin golden threads that permeate the clothes. And at the same time, the scene can be imagined as a full-wall chapel. Mantegna knew this and, in order to enhance the effect of the monumentality of the depicted, wrote it on a concave surface.

In the “Circumcision” scene (on the right), the artist painstakingly painted the wall ornaments, compositions in the lunettes - “The Sacrifice of Isaac” and “Moses Handing the Tablets of the Covenant to the People”, a basket with doves in Joseph’s hand, a tray with accessories for circumcision, which the boy holds out to the high priest. The image of little John the Baptist is touching, who sucks his finger, holding a bitten bagel in his other hand. All this detailed scene would be suitable for a large fresco.

And only in the third composition - “Ascension” (on the left) - there are almost no carefully depicted details, it is more ascetic and powerful, a rocky landscape is again visible in it, and even the cloud on which Christ stands seems to be carved from marble. But, as before, the feelings of the characters are subtly conveyed: the amazement and hope of Mary and the apostles, slight sadness and the promise of a meeting in heaven in the eyes of the Savior.

Hercules and Hydra
ANTONIO POLLAIOLO
1460. Wood, tempera. 17x12

A small painting by Antonio Pollaiolo, a Florentine Quattrocento painter, depicts one of the exploits of the ancient Greek hero Hercules, or Hercules. The second tablet with a composition on the theme of this myth is also in the museum. Researchers suggest that both works are sketches for large paintings ordered by the artist Piero Medici, or their smaller copies. But they can also be independent works, and then it should be noted all the more that Pollaiolo managed to endow such a small image with monumentality.

As a plot, the master took that part of the myth about Hercules, in which he fights with the Lernean hydra, a giant snake that had many heads and one of them is immortal. The artist conveys the tension of the battle by depicting the hero's swollen muscles and a desperate expression on his face. The work is full of movement. The strength and power of Hercules are emphasized by the landscape located far below and by the fact that the main character is placed against the background of the sky. But at the same time, the painter was clearly fascinated by the beautiful and elastic lines of draperies, the snake body, the winding ribbon of the river, which create a complex pattern in the work.

Portraits of Federico da Montefeltro Urbino and Battista Sforza
PIERO DELLA FRANCESCA
1465. Both - wood, oil. 47х33

As if filled with air, the paintings of this Quattrocento artist at the same time leave an impression of power and peace. These are the portraits of the Duke of Urbino Federico da Montefeltro and his wife Battista Sforza.

Their faces are given in profile, in accordance with the portrait tradition of that time, closely associated with the depiction of famous people on coins and medals. But none of the portrait painters was able to extract such benefits from this angle as Piero della Francesca: he gave the appearances of Federico and Battista an unprecedented grandeur, for the first time raised the person being portrayed to those heights where he should stand in the era of humanism. The impression of monumentality of the images with the small size of the boards is enhanced by the fact that the role of the background is played by a landscape receding into the distance, shown from a high point. It should be noted that the angle in which Federico is depicted also made it possible to hide the disfigured half of the fearless condottiere's face. But the chased profile, even more highlighted by the even red color of the robe, has a soft light and shade molding. A calm, self-confident look from under heavy eyelids and the tenderness of the skin on the temples, cheeks and neck give such a subtle and true feeling of a person that the psychological portrait that has spread at a later time does not always give.

Initially, the doors of the altar, thanks to the hinges, were movable, it could be folded and viewed on the back of the boards with portraits of the scene of the triumph of Federico and Battista. Both spouses, sitting on horse-drawn chariots, ride towards each other. In the image of the landscape, painted in detail and with the transfer of the light-air environment, the influence of Netherlandish painting is noticeable.

Baptism of Christ
ANDREA VERROCCHIO,
LEONARDO DA VINCI
1470–1475. Wood, tempera, oil. 177х151

Being primarily a sculptor, Andrea Verrocchio carried out painting orders intermittently, as a result of which he could not finish one of his paintings - The Baptism of Christ. He asked his student Leonardo da Vinci to complete what he had started, a young one who had already achieved great success by that time, although he remained in the teacher's workshop. The central figures and the angel on the right were already painted in a manner typical of Verrocchio - dryish, linear, with exquisite silhouettes of the figures.

Leonardo depicted an angel standing on the left, but he did not use tempera, like a teacher, but oil paints, which dry longer and allow him to convey soft chiaroscuro, envelop the image with a light haze. This is how the Leonardo technique “sfumato”, which later became famous, was born. The artist also painted a part of the landscape behind the angels, based on a drawing he made depicting the valley of the Arno River. The work of the young painter impressed Verrocchio and became so popular that copies were made from this group of angels.

Adoration of the Magi
LEONARDO DA VINCI
1480–1481. Wood, tempera, oil. 243x246

This altarpiece was commissioned by Leonardo from the canons of the monastery of San Donato in Scopeto, but remained unfinished, either because the artist had gone to Milan or because he simply abandoned this idea. But the picture looks complete and carries all the features of the then master's painting.

In the tradition of the Quattrocento, Leonardo somewhat overloaded the composition with an abundance of figures in expressive poses, landscape and architecture details. However, this can be explained by the fact that Leonardo, as an artist of the Renaissance, was curious about what constitutes the world order. Therefore, such a category as diversity played a big role for him. A contemporary of Leonardo, the writer Baldassare Castiglione, noted: “... the world order that we see, with a spacious sky, so shining with bright stars, and with a land in the center, surrounded by seas, which is diversified by mountains, valleys and rivers and which is decorated with such different trees and lovely flowers and herbs - one might say, is a noble and great picture, drawn by the hand of nature and God ... "

The Italian humanists placed the divine at the center of the universe. In Leonardo, Mary, holding the Christ Child on her lap, stands out against the background of many "active" characters with a calm pose and a smooth turn of her head. The artist builds a compositional triangle or, more precisely, a pyramid, on top of which is the head of Mary. This technique, which gave the depicted balance and harmony, was widely used among the masters of the High Renaissance.

Annunciation
LEONARDO DA VINCI
Around 1472. Wood, oil, tempera. 98x217

Leonardo worked on this painting while still in Verrocchio's studio. The young artist had to complete what other students started and correct their mistakes. He made several sketches of Mary's cloak and the robes of the Archangel Gabriel, and on the basis of these drawings he rewrote the draperies, which as a result formed voluminous folds. Then Leonardo repainted the head of the archangel Gabriel, making it slightly bowed, but did not have time to make changes to the image of Mary, whose pose does not look quite natural. The one whose brush passed here before Leonardo probably did not know the laws of perspective very well either. But all these mistakes in an unexpected way show how difficult it was to master those techniques of realistic painting that seem so natural in the paintings of the Renaissance masters.

A drawing in pencil and ink, made by the artist at the same time, has survived, in which Mary bowed her head, covering her eyes, Her hair was tied on top with a ribbon with a precious brooch, and silky strands scattered over her shoulders. Leonardo, apparently, so cherished this subtle, poetic image, born under his pen, that he painted a separate small picture on the theme of the Annunciation.

Adoration of the Magi
SANDRO BOTTICELLI
Around 1475. Tempera on wood. 111x134

In this multi-figure composition, the Quattrocento master Sandro Botticelli presented members of the Medici family, bankers and merchants, the rulers of Florence, and those close to them, among whom was himself, in the image of the Magi worshiping the Infant Christ.

Among the ruins of ancient Rome, symbolizing the end of the old world and the beginning of the new, Christian, sits the Madonna. She holds the Baby on her knees, stands behind, leaning on his arm, Joseph and tenderly looks at the newborn. Cosimo the Elder Medici knelt before Christ. Giorgio Vasari wrote: “And we see special expressiveness in the old man, who, kissing the feet of our Lord and melting with tenderness, in the most excellent way shows that he has reached the goal of his longest journey.” Closer to the front edge of the picture are the sons of Cosimo, Piero and Giovanni. By the time the work was written, they and their father had already died, but Botticelli included them in the family circle as inextricably linked with it. In black with a red robe stands, thinking, Giuliano, the son of Piero, behind him with a beard and in a hat - the philosopher Giovanni Argiropulo, in front of him in blue - the customer of the work, Zanobi del Lama. On the left, in a proud pose, stands Giuliano's brother, Lorenzo the Magnificent, next to him is the poet Angelo Poliziano, the humanist and philosopher Pico della Mirandola tells them something. Finally, in the lower right corner, Botticelli himself, wrapped in a red cloak, looks at the viewer. The tradition of portraying oneself among participants in a scene from Holy Scripture was widespread during the Renaissance.

The Medici established in Florence the so-called Brotherhood of the Magi, which included themselves and their associates. The brotherhood staged costumed processions: its members, disguised as magi, walked and rode horses through the streets of the city. Probably, these mysteries also found their echo in the painting by Botticelli.

Birth of Venus
SANDRO BOTTICELLI
1483–1485 Canvas, tempera. 172.5x278.5

"The Birth of Venus", like "Spring", the artist wrote for Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco Medici. The plot of this picture is based on the myth of how the goddess of love was born from the sea foam. Botticelli could find an exposition of the myth from ancient authors or its processing from the poet Angelo Poliziano, who worked at court.

…Involves
Marshmallow in love sink to the shore,
And their heavens rejoice in their flight...
... And you can see - the goddess's eyes shine.
Before her with a smile the sky and the elements.
There, in white, the Horas are walking by the shore ...

Venus, standing in the shell, swims, urged on by Zephyr and Chloris, and Ora, one of the companions of the goddess, who holds a veil to envelop her, comes to meet her. The whimsical folds of the veil and clothes fluttering in the wind, the waves on the sea, the broken line of the coast, the “corrugated” shell flap, and finally the flying hair of Venus - all this sets off the smooth outlines of the goddess’s body and enhances the feeling of supreme harmony that her appearance evokes. Above the head of Venus, the hands of the characters almost close, and it seems as if an arch overshadows her, which is echoed by the rounded bottom of the shell. Thus, the figure of the goddess closes in an imaginary oval. If in "Spring" the composition consists of several groups of equal meaning, then here Venus is the center towards which everything aspires.

For Renaissance artists, naked Venus, as opposed to dressed, symbolized heavenly love. Botticelli endowed his heroine with that chastity, which is revered as the highest virtue, hence the motif of worship present in the picture. The beautiful face of the heroine resembles the faces of the Madonnas in the paintings of Botticelli, and therefore in this work the Christian theme sounds through the antique theme, and the combination of ancient humanism and Christianity gave the phenomenon of the Italian Renaissance.

Madonna and Child with Angels (Madonna del Magnificat)
SANDRO BOTTICELLI
1483. Wood, tempera. Diameter 118

“Magnificat” is the name of the Catholic laudatory song of the Virgin Mary, given to this doxology on the first line: “Magnificat anima mea Dominum” - “My soul magnifies the Lord”, therefore the picture has a second name, which translates as “Magnificence of the Madonna”. At Botticelli, the Mother of God holds a pen in her hand, preparing to dip it in ink and then write down in the book the words from the Gospel of Luke, on which the hymn is written.

The shape of the tondo - a round picture - was especially suitable for Botticelli's painting with its smooth, flowing lines, curves of bodies, bowed heads of characters. In this case, the artist gives the whole composition rounded outlines, which are formed by the poses of the Madonna and the Child, the bowed angel on the left, the hands of the angels meeting at the top, holding the crown and placing it on the head of Mary. In addition, the whole group is placed against the background of a round window, the landscape behind it also curves strangely, as if reflected in a convex mirror. This is one of the most lyrical works of Botticelli, where music is embodied in composition, rhythm, colors, lines and facial expressions.

sacred allegory
GIOVANNI BELLINI
1490–1499 Wood, oil. 73x119

Giovanni Bellini, whose work influenced all Venetian painting and, above all, its mood, left behind a riddle that they still cannot solve: what is the plot of the painting "Sacred Allegory"? This abstract name was given to her because no one could exactly answer the question.

The artist depicted the so-called holy conversation: the Mother of God sitting on the throne is facing the saints. Among them, one can distinguish Paul with a sword, driving away a man in a turban, Peter, leaning on the balustrade and guarding the entrance to the platform, Sebastian with an arrow in his chest, and Job, prayerfully folded his hands. But the composition of the “holy conversation”, which was always central when Bellini or other artists turned to this plot, is turned sideways to the viewer and becomes one of the presented motifs. The other is babies playing under a tree. In their group, one stands out who holds an apple in his hands, symbolizing human sins. This child may be Christ, who came into the world to atone for sins, and the babies around Him may be souls in purgatory for whom the saints pray. The river is most likely Summer, separating this world from the world of the living, which is visible in the middle and distant plans. There, an anchorite prays in a cave, a centaur, personifying temptations, roams nearby, and even further people live their ordinary lives.

But the Russian art critic Pavel Muratov was right when he wrote about Bellini: “And perhaps the key to his painting is not so much in what is depicted as in the very feeling that everything is imbued with here.<…>We understand the deep contemplative meditation in which his saints are immersed, and the incorporeal subtlety of infantile games with the golden apples of the dark-leaved mystical tree. In the country that opens behind the sleeping mirror waters of Lethe, we recognize our country of prayers and charms. Our souls roam there in the solitude of the rocks, when they are freed by sleep ... At the dawn of the morning, they plunge into the waters of Lethe for the second time and go out, keeping sadness, to the shore of life.

Pieta
PIETRO PERUGHINO
Around 1493–1494. Wood, oil, tempera. 168x176

The head of the painting school of Umbria and the teacher of Rafael, Pietro Perugino, created paintings in which, for example, in the presented one, some special silence reigns. The word “pieta”, which in Italian means “compassion, pity”, is used in painting and sculpture to refer to the scene of the Mother of God mourning the dead Christ lying on Her lap.

The picture is dominated by two mutually balanced compositional lines - the elongated body of the Savior and semicircular arches, which are echoed by the figure of Mary. The arch - a symbol of the heavenly vault and world harmony - already with its shape introduces a feeling into the composition, emphasizing that Christ's sacrifice was not in vain. On His face - appeasement, the Mother of God - a deep longing that finds no way out, and on the faces of John the Evangelist and the saint standing behind him - that expression that can be defined by the classic line "my sadness is bright." Sadness and along with it hope are felt both in the spring landscape in the distance, and in the golden air that envelops everything depicted.

ITALIAN ART:
XVI CENTURY AND AFTER

Madonna and Child with Angels and a Prophet (Madonna with a Long Neck)
PARMIGANINO (FRANCESCO MAZZOLA)
1534–1540. Wood, oil. 216x132

One of the leading artists of Mannerism, Parmigianino, in contrast to the masters of the Renaissance, sought harmony in deliberately altered figures and objects, elongated and as if gravitating towards infinity. The painting "Madonna with a Long Neck" was written by the master commissioned by his friend's sister, Elena Baiardi, for the church of Santa Maria dei Servi in ​​Parma.

The bodies of the depicted are elongated (hence the second name of this work) and wave-like curved. This is especially evident in the figure of an angel standing in front. The feeling of the unreal, magical that this work evokes is reinforced by the cold, mother-of-pearl colors, as well as the figure of St. Jerome, which is too small compared to the rest, and the architectural background, unfinished, either on purpose or due to the death of the master, where the columns turned out to be bearing nothing. . And at the same time, a single column here acquires a special meaning as a symbol of perseverance.

The crucifixion is depicted on the vase in the hands of an angel. The theme of the future torment and death of the Savior is also embodied in the pose of the sleeping Child, reminiscent of the iconography of the pieta - the image of the Mother of God, mourning the dead Christ, whom She holds on her knees.

ITALIAN ART (XVI CENTURY AND LATER):

• Doni Madonna (Holy Family). Michelangelo Buonarroti
• Self-portrait. RAFAEL SANTI
• Madonna with a goldfinch. RAFAEL SANTI
• Warrior and squire (Gattamelata). GIORGIONE (?)
• Death of Adonis. SEBASTIANO DEL PIOMBO
• Perseus freeing Andromeda. PIERO DI COSIMO
• Flora. TITIAN VECELLIO
• Portrait of Eleonora Gonzaga della Rovere. TITIAN VECELLIO
• Venus Urbinskaya. TITIAN VECELLIO
• Madonna and Child (Madonna of the Harpies). ANDREA DEL SARTO
• Portrait of a girl with a book of poems by Petrarch. ANDREA DEL SARTO
• Portrait of Cosimo the Elder Medici. JACOPO PONTORMO
• Dinner at Emmaus. JACOPO PONTORMO
• Portrait of Lorenzo the Magnificent. GIORGIO VASARI
• Portrait of the Bia Medici. AGNLOLO BRONZINO
• Portrait of Eleanor of Toledo with her son Giovanni de' Medici. AGNLOLO BRONZINO
• Leda and the swan. JACOPO TINTORETTO
• Madonna del Popolo. FEDERICO BAROCCI
• Bacchus.
• The sacrifice of Isaac. Michelangelo Merisi Da Caravaggio
• David with the head of Goliath. Michelangelo Merisi Da Caravaggio
• Judith beheading Holofernes. ARTEMISIA GENTILESCHI
• View of the Doge's Palace in Venice. ANTONIO CANAL (CANALETTO)
• Portrait of Felicita Sartori (?) in Turkish costume. ROSALBA CARRIERA

Madonna Doni (Holy Family)
Michelangelo Buonarroti
1505–1506 Wood, oil, tempera. Diameter 120

This work is the only finished easel painting that has come down to us by Michelangelo, who focused on sculpture, architecture and frescoes. In his monumental murals, the figures resemble sculpture, and this is no coincidence: when asked by the writer Benedetto Varka about which is higher - painting or sculpture, Michelangelo replied: "Painting, it seems to me, is considered better when it is more inclined towards relief."

So in the "Madonna Doni" or "Tondo Doni" (tondo - a round-shaped picture or relief), the figures of the Madonna, Christ, St. Joseph, St. John the Baptist and young men in the background are written out precisely in relief, sculpturally. However, this feature distinguished the entire pictorial school of Tuscany from, for example, the Venetian one. The central group resembles a sculptural composition: it is compact, and it seems that it can be walked around from all sides and examined. In this work, the architect’s thinking is also felt, so everything depicted is stable and securely “fixed” in space.

The painting of the picture resembles a monumental one, similar to those frescoes that Michelangelo performed on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in 1508-1512. The figures of the characters and the folds of the draperies of Madonna Doni are lapidary, that is, they are designed for a distant view. The pose of the Mother of God is as complex as that of the Sistine characters, as if intended to echo the plasticity of some architecture. And with its spatial composition, going into depth, the tondo looks like a painted ceiling lamp.

And yet, this is an easel painting, as evidenced by its color, which consists of deep and pure colors, not so necessary in monumental painting, and the closed composition of the tondo, and the lively characters depicted. Thus, Michelangelo, who called himself, first of all, a sculptor, proved that he was fluent in the techniques of easel painting, and showed all his talents in this work, as befitted a master of the High Renaissance.

self-portrait
RAFAEL SANTI
1506. Wood, tempera. 47.5x33

A young man with an inspired face, the face of a young genius - such is Raphael, looking at us from a self-portrait. Calmness and heavenly harmony emanate from his appearance, which distinguishes the entire painting of the artist. The coloring of this picture is emphatically restrained - a neutral background, dark hair, the same cap. Between the dark attire and warm-colored skin, a narrow white stripe of a shirt is visible - in this thinnest transition from deaf black to lively tones of the face and neck - all Raphael, who felt the deep laws of painting.

A self-portrait, very similar to this one, only in a mirror spread, the artist placed on the fresco “The School of Athens” (1508–1511) in the Vatican “Stanza della Senyatura”: on the right, in the image of the ancient Greek painter Apelles, the same image of Raphael filled with high poetry is visible.

Madonna with the Goldfinch
RAFAEL SANTI
1507. Oil on wood. 107х77

This is one of those images of the Madonna and Child with John the Baptist that Raphael created in Florence. It was ordered to the artist by his friend, the merchant Lorenzo Nazi, for his own wedding. The painter used here the same triangular composition as in other paintings on this topic, thanks to which the image acquired balance and rare harmony.

Mary seems to cover the Christ Child and little John. The soft lines of Her figure, the flowing folds of her robe, as well as the idyllic landscape in the background, which has become typical of Raphael, with smooth outlines of the landscape, immersed in a light haze and melting away, fill the picture with a mood of peace. But the goldfinch, a symbol of the Passion of Christ, in the hand of John the Baptist, to whom the Infant is reaching, introduces an alarming note into the image. At the same time, the face of the Madonna, gentle, with downcast eyes, framed by soft hair, expresses calmness, which is transmitted to the viewer.

Warrior and squire (Gattamelata)
GIORGIONE (?)
Around 1505–1510. Canvas, oil. 90x73

The canvas depicts the condottiere Erasmo de Narni, who lived almost a century before the painting and received the nickname Gattamelata - “affectionate cat”. Coming from the lower strata of society, he became a hired soldier, served in different cities and different rulers, rose to the rank of condottiere - the leader of the detachment who was in the service of the commune. In addition, he became the ruler of Padua, and his equestrian statue by Donatello is installed near the main Padua cathedral - the papal basilica of Sant Antonio. The painting next to Gattamelata probably depicts his son Antonio.

Giorgione and his followers formed a whole trend in Venetian painting at the turn of the 15th-16th centuries, the hallmark of which was the contemplative mood of the depicted characters. So this warrior with an unrefined appearance, accustomed to a hard life full of risks, froze with an expression on his face, as if he were listening to music. His sword, armor and helmet are perceived as just symbols, and the boy is an angel standing over his shoulder.

Death of Adonis
SEBASTIANO DEL PIOMBO
1512. Oil on canvas. 189x285

Being a student of Giovanni Bellini and influenced by Giorgione, Sebastiano del Piombo adopted from them the softness of forms and lyrical mood, bringing them into his paintings. But while working in Rome, he was also influenced by the art of Raphael with his absolute harmony and Michelangelo, who endowed his characters with unprecedented power.

In the presented canvas, the artist turned to the myth of Adonis, the most beautiful young man, the lover of Aphrodite, who was killed during a boar hunt. Del Piombo depicted the moment when Aphrodite learns about the death of Adonis, about which Cupid informs her, and most of the work is occupied by the deities sitting in the grove, and the dying hero is at a distance. This technique - to carry the climax of the whole scene to a certain distance, to delay its perception by the viewer - sharpens the anxious mood that is spilled in the picture and runs through the characters in a wave.

In the background, the artist captured a view of Venice with the Doge's Palazzo and the bell tower of the Cathedral of San Marco, reflected in the still waters of the lagoon. The evening landscape with a light blue sky, a golden sunset, white puffy clouds in the sky and shadows running on land and water fills everything depicted with a subtle sadness that Venetian artists liked to convey in their paintings.

Perseus freeing Andromeda
PIERO DI COSIMO
Around 1510–1515. Wood, oil. 70x120

The Florentine artist Piero di Cosimo combined in his work the harmonious, spiritualized images of the High Renaissance with the love for the detailed depiction of the world around him, which he took from the Dutch painters.

In the presented painting, painted in the late period of creativity, the master used the ancient Greek myth of Perseus saving Andromeda. Returning after defeating the Gorgon Medusa, the hero saw a girl tied to a rock. It was Andromeda, whom the inhabitants of her native country sacrificed to a sea monster that devoured people in order to get rid of him. Perseus, in his winged sandals and a magic helmet that made him invisible, is depicted in the picture twice - flying over the sea and standing on the back of a monster, brandishing a sword. On the left, Andromeda is tormented and frightened people are hiding, covering themselves with cloaks, and on the right, the people are having fun and waving laurel branches, glorifying the hero.

The inclusion of events of different times in the composition and their interpretation reminiscent of a fairy tale testify to the still not obsolete traditions of the previous century - the Quattrocento, but the soft outlines of the figures and the landscape wide open in the distance indicate that this work was created in the era of the High Renaissance.

Flora
TITIAN VECELLIO
About 1515–1517. Canvas, oil. 79.7x63.5

About who is depicted in the presented painting by Titian, the Venetian artist of the High Renaissance, they have long been arguing. At one time it was believed that this was the daughter of the artist Palma the Elder, and the work itself was attributed to him, then, when it was again recognized as the work of Titian, disputes about the heroine of the painting continued. The idea to identify the captured girl with Flora, the Roman goddess of flowers, was suggested by a bouquet in her hand. And the whole appearance of this young, blooming, dreamy creature with flowing hair, in a white shirt falling from one shoulder, is really associated with the ancient goddess.

At the same time, this is a portrait of a real-life Venetian, with golden, in the fashion of the time, hair and fair, velvety skin. It is quite possible that the young Titian painted her, fantasizing on the theme of antiquity, and the result was a lively, full-blooded and at the same time elevated image above reality.

Portrait of Eleonora Gonzaga della Rovere
TITIAN VECELLIO
1536–1537 Canvas, oil. 114x103

Usually, Titian, creating paintings on mythological and Christian subjects, as well as fantasy portraits like Flora, was free in pictorial means. But, portraying noble persons, he seemed to become the secular person he was in life. Loving life and knowing how to enjoy it, he nevertheless knew well what the conventions of etiquette were. Therefore, the portrait shows, first of all, an aristocrat from a noble Italian family, sitting in a ceremonial pose and dressed in a luxurious outfit. The artist carefully conveyed both the friability of velvet, and the brilliance of gold, and the airiness of lace.

Titian emphasizes the dignity of Eleanor and through him - her virtue, this concept was important for the Renaissance. The face of the model is impassive, and only a gentle blush on white skin and brown eyes, glowing with intelligence and strength, enliven it and make it possible to feel the character of a woman who exists within the limits prescribed by her class. If it is true that Eleanor served as Titian's muse when painting such paintings as "Girl in a Fur Cape" and especially "Venus of Urbino", then one can imagine the range of possibilities of this painter: he was able to fantasize about the appearance of the women he liked, and to paint strict ceremonial portraits.

Venus Urbinskaya
TITIAN VECELLIO
1538. Oil on canvas. 119x165

The ancient theme, which often arose in the work of Titian, allowed this cheerful Venetian to throw out on the canvas all his admiration for the world and the ability to appreciate its beauty. The master loved antiquity as something alive and therefore boldly placed the characters of Greek or Roman mythology in a contemporary environment.

His "Venus", acquired by Guidobaldo dela Rovere, Duke of Urbino and therefore given its present name, represents a young Venetian, a beauty with a lively look, a delicate body and golden hair. Her posture is reminiscent of the classic type of "Venus Pudik", that is, "shy", but this girl, if a little embarrassed, is fully aware of her beauty. The picture echoes Giorgione's Sleeping Venus, kept in the Dresden Art Gallery, but Titian in the guise of a goddess has more sensuality. However, this sensibility is deceptive. The artist chose a room where everything breathes the comfort of a strong home: in the background, a maid is looking for something in a chest, and another looks at her in anticipation. A myrtle stands on the window - a symbol of married life, white sheets are laid on the bed and white pillows are thrown, talking about the purity of the woman lying on them, at whose feet a dog curled up, symbolizing devotion. Thus, the hidden meaning of the picture must be understood as conjugal love.

Madonna and Child (Madonna of the Harpies)
ANDREA DEL SARTO
1517. Oil on canvas. 207x178

Andrea del Sarto worked at a time when Renaissance painting was at its zenith, so the artist's work carries all the features of that art. This was especially evident in the harmony, sublimity of the images in the paintings. But at the same time, in the works of the master, signs of the already emerging mannerism are visible: elongated figures, an obvious “staged” scene, an underlined elegance of poses and gestures, and a barely perceptible “sweetness” that marks the appearance of the characters.

The presented work was made for the church of San Francesco in Florence, so St. Francis is also depicted on the canvas. On the right is St. John the Evangelist. The name of the painting is associated with strange winged creatures carved in high relief on a pedestal. Giorgio Vasari believed that these were harpies - monsters from Greek mythology, birds with the heads of women. But most likely this is an image of locusts from the Apocalypse, which is also indicated by the figure of John the Evangelist, in whose Revelation it is said: “And the locusts came out of the smoke to the earth, and power was given to them, which the earthly scorpions have” (Revelation, 9: 3). By depicting the Mother of God standing over the symbols of impending disasters, the artist emphasized Her role as the savior of the righteous.

Portrait of a girl with a book of poems by Petrarch
ANDREA DEL SARTO
1528. Wood, tempera. 87x69

Pictures filled with grandeur and a lyrical, warm-hearted portrait of a girl are the two poles in the work of Andrea del Sarto, a Florentine artist of the High Renaissance. However, warmth and domesticity are also present in this portrait because the master painted the daughter of his beloved wife Lucrezia from his first marriage - his stepdaughter Maria, whom he raised as his own.

With a sly look at the viewer, the girl holds in her hands a volume of Petrarch's love sonnets. For the first time, she touches the secrets of feeling that excite and beckon her, the heroine wants to hide her discovery and cannot do this, awkwardly pointing her finger at the lines she reads. All this is so accurately captured by the artist that a seemingly ordinary plot with a girl in love, involuntarily hinting at her elevated inner state, evokes a warm and reverent mood in the viewer. Few people achieved such depth in revealing the inner world of a young being in the time of Andrea del Sarto.

Portrait of Cosimo the Elder Medici
JACOPO PONTORMO
1519–1520. Wood, oil. 86x65

In this early work of Jacopo Pontormo, there are already signs of Mannerism, of which he would become one of the founders. It was the manner of the image, that is, the way it was written, that attracted the artist.

The portrait of Cosimo the Elder Medici was created more than half a century after the founder of the Medici dynasty, a banker and merchant who became the ruler of Florence, passed away. In the posthumous depiction of a person, the master could give himself some freedom.

The portrait was ordered by the secretary of the Duke of Urbino, Lorenzo Medici, one of the descendants of Cosimo, probably for the birth of his son. Cosimo sits in an armchair, in front of him is a branch of a laurel tree, the emblem of the family, around which a paper ribbon winds with verses from Virgil's Aeneid. In the stooped thin figure of the depicted and his face, fatigue from the stormy years is felt, his hands, like those who are accustomed to command and do not want to part with power, are compressed. The red robe of Cosimo, standing out against a dark background, brings an alarming note to the canvas and conveys the drama that marks the human condition.

Dinner at Emmaus
JACOPO PONTORMO
1525. Oil on canvas. 230x173

In this picture, Jacopo Pontormo depicts the moment described in the Gospel of Luke, when the resurrected Christ, who appeared to two of his disciples on the road to Emmaus and was not recognized by them, agrees to share the evening meal with them: “And when He was reclining with them, then, taking bread , blessed, broke and gave them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him” (Luke 24:30).

The painter portrayed Christ taller than the rest of the scene, but He is on the same level with the viewer, and the floor, table and characters sitting behind him are seen a little from above. From this, the whole composition is literally drawn to the figure of the Savior. Pontormo introduced into his work the features of the everyday genre, noticeable in the poses of the students, in the way one of them pours wine, and the second holds bread. But above the head of Christ, the all-seeing eye of God is depicted in a triangle surrounded by radiance and symbolizing the Trinity, and this returns the viewer to the picture to its sublime plan.

Portrait of Lorenzo the Magnificent
GIORGIO VASARI
About 1533–1534. Wood, oil. 90x72

The architect, artist and first historian of Italian art, Giorgio Vasari, painted this portrait commissioned by Alessandro Medici many years after the death of the person depicted on it.

Lorenzo the Magnificent was the grandson of Cosimo the Elder Medici and concentrated all power over Florence in his hands, but at the same time patronized artists and poets and wrote poetry himself. The time of his reign was the "golden age" of Florentine art. But this portrait depicts a weary-looking, thoughtful man, indifferent to both fame and wealth, which the red purse hints at, and even to the fact that he was declared "the vessel of all virtues", as evidenced by the inscription behind. Vasari expressed in the picture a longing for a time when painting, poetry and the words of the humanists resonated in the soul of the ruler.

Russian art critic Pavel Muratov wrote about Lorenzo as he was in his declining years: “Then Florence still breathed with him; he made her image incorruptible. Even to the minds of the next generations, the Quattrocento Florence, the Florence of Lorenzo the Magnificent, seemed to be the manifestation of an ancient deity in a man who visited the Italian land. Simply addressing her was uplifting. When, half a century later ... Giorgio Vasari took up the portrait of Lorenzo now in the Uffizia, the genius of old Florence strangely revived in him ... "

Portrait of the Bia Medici
AGNLOLO BRONZINO
1542. Wood, tempera. 64x48

Agnolo Bronzino, who worked for Duke Cosimo I of the Medici, like many court painters, sought to convey in portraits not so much the inner world of a person as the feeling of those whom he captured of their high position. Hence - some detachment of the people depicted by him. But in the presented portrait, the girl, despite all the solemnity of her posture and a slightly “closed” expression on her face, is full of charm, like any child. At the same time, some sadness emanates from her. Maybe the fact is that this is a posthumous portrait of Cosimo I's daughter Bianca, who was diminutively called Biya. She was born before her father's marriage to Eleanor of Toledo from a woman whose name was known only to the Duke himself and his mother. Biya died as a child, her father ordered a portrait of Bronzino, and the artist painted a little girl with ruddy plump cheeks and an adult look, seemingly looking at the viewer, but also past him.

Portrait of Eleanor of Toledo with her son Giovanni de' Medici
AGNLOLO BRONZINO
1545. Oil on canvas. 115x96

Agnolo Bronzino was a representative of Mannerism, a pictorial movement that arose in the bowels of the High Renaissance, which was waning. Mannerism put art above nature, hence the certain coldness that emanates from the artist's works. At the same time, his portraits are full of that knowledge about a person that is available only to great masters.

Eleanor of Toledo, daughter of the Neapolitan Viceroy and wife of Cosimo I de Medici, and her children Bronzino wrote more than once, but this portrait is perhaps the best. She is presented here as the ruler of Tuscany. The woman is dressed in a luxurious dress made of silver brocade with gold embroidery, she has a pearl net on her head, pearl necklaces on her chest, her face is whitened and has a detached expression. But the plump baby, whom Eleanor hugs, makes you forget about her title and see that we are, first of all, a mother (she gave birth to eleven children), who loves her child and worries about him. Maternal anxiety, which she could not hide even for the sake of etiquette, was noticed in the look of a woman by Bronzino. It turns out that the whole luxurious outfit of the duchess is a kind of distraction that makes the viewer look at secondary things, in order to later meet Eleanor's eyes and understand that this picture was created by an artist who deeply understood the person.

Leda and the swan
JACOPO TINTORETTO
1555. Oil on canvas. 162x218

This Venetian painter created large canvases in which the poses and gestures of the characters are complex and expressive, and light struggles with darkness. In this case, Tintoretto turned to the ancient myth of how Zeus, or Jupiter among the Romans, captivated by the beauty of Leda, appeared to her in the form of a swan. The ancient Roman poet Ovid wrote in the Heroides:

What to remember about the deception of the white-feathered bird of streams
And grieve that the swan of Jupiter hid in itself?

The plot was popular with Italian artists because of the opportunity to convey a shade of sensual love, depict the beautiful naked body of a woman, and finally bring a special plasticity to the picture. In Tintoretto, the swan reaches out to Leda, who herself resembles this graceful bird. According to legend, the action took place on the Evros River, where Leda bathed, but the artist moved the scene to a room in a rich Venetian house. The beauty is reclining on the bed, behind her is a velvet curtain that sets off the whiteness of the body and emphasizes its smoothness and tenderness. On the left is a servant who, not knowing what kind of swan it is, is about to put it in a cage. The action of the maid, from whom Leda closes her lover, enhances the moment of mystery present in the picture.

Madonna del Popolo
FEDERICO BAROCCI
1575–1579 Canvas, oil. 359x252

The origin of the Baroque is clearly seen in the painting of Federico Barocci, who created large emotionally expressive canvases with many characters and complex composition. This art flourished in papal Rome during the era of the Counter-Reformation, when the Catholic Church sought to strengthen its position in every possible way and wanted a powerful painting that appealed to the faithful.

Barocci depicts Christ, before whom the Mother of God kneels and prays to the Son for humanity (hence the name of the painting: “popolo” in Italian means “people”). All sorts of people crowd below: a cripple, a blind musician, a noble lady with children, a simple woman with a child. The theme of the “seven works of mercy”, which, according to the teachings of the Catholic Church, lead to salvation, also found a response in the picture. Therefore, for example, a richly dressed boy is depicted here, giving alms to the poor.

The whole picture is full of movement, the architecture in the background shifts strangely in space, giving the impression of something illusory. This feature was also characteristic of Mannerism - the direction from which the Baroque also grew.

Bacchus
Michelangelo Merisi Da Caravaggio
About 1595–1597. Canvas, oil. 95x85

Standing at the origins of the Baroque, Caravaggio painted this picture in a relatively serene period of his life. Hence the choice of theme - Bacchus, the Greek god of wine and fun, in the image of which the master showed a young man with a languid look, affectionately holding out a glass of wine to the viewer.

His strong, muscular body radiates with health, a gentle blush plays on his cheeks, plump lips are juicy, and the color of the canvas leaves a feeling of celebration. But the fruit in the vase in front of Bacchus is not so fresh: the apple is rotten, there is a wormhole on it. And the vine leaves in the hero's wreath are already withering. Caravaggio was not afraid to depict life as it is, he keenly felt its hidden drama, which was reflected in his later art, which influenced all European painting. The artist returned to the theme of the cheerful ancient god once again, but painted in his image himself, physically and mentally exhausted by illness (the canvas “Sick Bacchus”, stored in the Borghese Gallery in Rome).

Sacrifice of Isaac
Michelangelo Merisi Da Caravaggio
1601–1602 Canvas, oil. 104x135

The drama that was growing in the work of Caravaggio was fully manifested in the presented work, all the more so due to its plot. The painting was painted for Cardinal Maffeo Barberini, whose patronage the artist enjoyed. He depicted the moment when the biblical elder Abraham is about to sacrifice his son Isaac, as ordered, in order to ascertain the depth of his faith, God.

In the shortest time period, Caravaggio managed to contain several intense actions performed by the characters: the father, holding the head of the bound son with his hand, raised a knife over him, the son screams in fear, but the angel sent by God stops Abraham and points him to the sacrificial ram. The picture is so overflowing with emotions that even the angel looks worried, and the lamb with an anxious look pulls its head, as if begging to be put in Isaac's place. The composition unfolding horizontally stretches all the actions of the characters in time, forcing both them and the viewer to experience the drama presented here even more strongly. It is not for nothing that baroque painting, the ancestor and one of the brightest representatives of which was Caravaggio, was characterized precisely by the tension of passions.

But the artist did not just depict human experiences at a particular moment - he went further, deepening them psychologically. So, the face of Abraham reflects the ardent faith and fatherly love fighting inside him. The landscape in the background plunging into twilight enhances the drama, but the city on the mountain and the bright distance of the sky emphasize the prosperous outcome that is about to come.

David with the head of Goliath
Michelangelo Merisi Da Caravaggio
1605. Oil on canvas. 222x147

The artist of the Bologna school, where academicism flourished, Guido Reni was also influenced by Caravaggio. He accepted the master's conviction that art should be as close to reality as possible, so there is no need to be afraid to portray even unpleasant or scary things. This synthesis of passionate, realistic painting and academic manner was embodied in Reni's painting David with the Head of Goliath.

One of the features of caravaggism was the contrasting lighting that the artist uses here, but his light is not as warm as that of Caravaggio, but rather cold. The biblical shepherd David, who defeated the giant, stands in a graceful pose, in a cap with a feather, and looks distantly at the head of the enemy, written with naturalistic details. The tradition of depicting David as a beautiful young man was established in Italian art as early as the 15th century, an example of which is the statue of Donatello. But the contrast between the young, flourishing hero, personifying life itself, and the terrible head of the slain giant, on which Reni's work is based, was characteristic of the art of mannerism and academicism.

Judith beheading Holofernes
ARTEMISIA GENTILESCHI
1620. Oil on canvas. 199x162.5

The daughter of Orazio Gentileschi, the best of those who belonged to the school of Caravaggio, Artemisia Gentileschi inherited all the features of this trend. They appeared in the presented picture.

For the canvas, the artist chose the moment when the Israeli woman Judith, who seduced the Assyrian commander Holofernes, whose army besieged her hometown, kills him. Gentileschi depicts a bloody scene with frightening details: the maid is trying to hold Holofernes, distraught with fear, and Judith grabs him by the hair and sticks the sword blade into his neck.

The painting of Caravaggio, who also depicted Judith and Holofernes, David with the head of Goliath, was distinguished by intense drama. The influence of this master explains both the complex poses in Gentileschi's painting, and the bright white light, like a flash of lightning, snatching figures out of the darkness. Like her correspondence teacher, Gentileschi skillfully depicts the human body, sometimes strong and tense, like the arms of Judith, sometimes soft and already almost limp, like the shoulders and legs of Holofernes.

The composition developing around an invisible axis, the forced emotions of the characters, a certain theatricality inherent in the depicted are signs of baroque art, in which the artist showed herself.

View of the Doge's Palace in Venice
ANTONIO CANAL (CANALETTO)
Before 1755. Oil on canvas. 51х83

In Venice of the 18th century, veduta, that is, images of city views, were popular. This tradition originated in the art of the 15th century artists Gentile Bellini and Vittore Carpaccio. But if for them both the person and the city were equivalent, then for the masters of the Venetian lead, the city becomes the main thing. One of the best representatives of this genre is Canaletto. He liked to draw a huge space, where Venice fit between water and sky, and often depicted the lagoon, the Cathedral of San Marco, the Doge's Palace. The buildings in this picture are reflected in the water and "look" at the sky. If another master of the lead, Francesco Guardi, in the canvases everything seems to be saturated with the moisture of the canals and the nearby sea, then Canaletto's three elements - water, earth and air - are equivalent. His land is not a shaky strip at the edge of the waters, the architecture looks solemnly revealing itself, and everything is united by the golden light pouring from the sky onto the blessed land of the Serenissima - the "Shiniest", as Venice is called.

Portrait of Felicita Sartori (?) in Turkish costume
ROSALBA CARRIERA
1730s. Paper, pastel. 70x55

The portraits that Rosalba Carriera painted bear all the features of Venetian painting with its subtle color, light and air. The artist is one of the representatives of the Rococo style, the distinctive feature of which is light, translucent (for Carriera - thanks to the pastel technique) tones and playful plots. Actually, all the Venetian painting of the XVIII century was close to Rococo in its structure. In it, as in this light art, there is a lot of carnival: after Venice ceased to play one of the leading roles in the political theater of Europe, it itself more and more turned into a theater, into a ghost town, where the masquerade began to look like a natural pastime. The girl in the picture, dressed in a Turkish dress and with a mask in her hand, is part of this carnival.

Mother-of-pearl, pink, blue are some of the favorite colors of rococo masters. The curve of the model's body, the turn of her head, and her sideways glance are also typically rocaille.

ART OF THE NETHERLANDS, HOLLAND AND FLANDERS

self-portrait
Rembrandt Harmens Van Rijn
Around 1639. Oil on wood. 62.5x54

Rembrandt was the artist in the new European painting who sought to penetrate into the depths of the human soul, which is why he painted self-portraits so much, as if talking to himself. In his youth, while still happy and even nonchalant, he liked to portray himself attired and slightly posing. “Rembrandt loved to dress up and dress up like a real actor,” said the French writer and artist Eugene Fromentin. - He put on turbans, velvet berets, felt hats, camisoles, raincoats ... He attached jewelry to his hair, put gold chains with stones around his neck. But at the same time, the artist sought to penetrate the secret of the secret of a person, which is also evident in this “Self-Portrait”.
Drawing himself blooming, the master tried to keep youth and beauty on the canvas, because they pass. Man as he is - weak, at the mercy of time and yet strong, while he feels the beat of life in himself - this is the main theme of Rembrandt's painting.

ART OF THE NETHERLANDS, HOLLAND AND FLANDRIAN:

• Position in the coffin. ROGIER VAN DER WEYDEN
• Adoration of the Shepherds (Portinari Altar). HUGO VAN DER GUS
• Saint Benedict. HANS MEMLING
• Annunciation. MATTHIAS STOMER
• Portrait of Isabella Brant. PETER PAUL RUBENS
• Portrait of Marguerite of Lorraine, Duchess of Orleans. ANTONIS VAN DYCK

Position in the coffin
ROGIER VAN DER WEYDEN
Around 1450. Oil on wood. 100x96

In his painting, Rogier van der Weyden, an artist of the early Netherlandish Renaissance, was able to depict different human moods. In the presented altarpiece, probably created during a trip to Italy, the painter conveyed deep suffering and at the same time clothed it in wondrous colors and lines.

Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, hiding their state of mind with all their might, carry the thin and emaciated body of Christ to the tomb; John bent down to kiss His hand; Mary Magdalene knelt down in dismay, the Mother of God with a tormented face gently holds the hand of her Son. The strong religious feeling that drove the brush of Rogier van der Weyden illuminates everything here, and that is why, in spite of everything, he gives beauty to the dramatic scene. The poses, for example, of John, are graceful, the gestures are smooth, the colors are pure, and the spirit is captured from the sun-drenched landscape in the distance.

The French historian and philosopher Hippolyte Taine wrote about the Netherlandish artists of that time: “Pay attention to their unusually rich and bright colors, to pure and powerful tones ... to the magnificent breaks of purple robes, to the azure recesses of long flowing robes, to draperies, green as a meadow penetrated by the rays of the sun ... into a mighty light that warms and gilds the whole picture ... "

Adoration of the Shepherds (Portinari Altarpiece)
HUGO VAN DER GUS
Around 1476–1478. Wood, oil. 253x588

The master of the Northern Renaissance, Hugo van der Goes, was able to reflect in his works the world around him with all its details and at the same time look at the depicted from the height that was inherent in the Renaissance. The artist had a genuine interest in the inner world of the people he painted, and the quality described was Renaissance in nature. All this is especially fully manifested in the presented triptych.

The altar is dedicated to the adoration of the shepherds to the Christ Child, on the side wings are depicted donors - Tommaso Portinari, his wife Maria Baroncelli, their children and saints, and on the back of the wings is the Annunciation. The Italian Tommaso Portinari, who headed the Medici bank office in the Belgian city of Bruges, ordered this altarpiece for the church of Sant'Egidio in Florence.

The main part of the altar is a vast space, in the center of which lies the Christ Child, which looks especially small compared to the figures of the Mother of God, Joseph and the shepherds. The Italian master in this case would have drawn a plump and large child to emphasize his unusual origin, but the Dutch artist is true to the realities of life, therefore, in the altar image of Van der Goes, the newborn baby is small, he has a hazy look of a barely born person and weak movements of the arms and legs. Having depicted God, who came into the world in the form of a tiny, touching child, the artist set a special mood for the work - tenderness.

He expresses this feeling subtly, since no one here is touched openly: the Mother of God is immersed in the contemplation of the Son, the angels begin to pray in detail, on the faces of other characters there is deep thoughtfulness and seriousness. But by the way Joseph's hair is tossed, who did not have time to smooth it out of excitement, by his hands diligently folded in prayer, by the impulse in which the shepherds bow before the Baby, one feels a joyful shock, which is replaced by emotion in the souls of all these people. And only one of the shepherds with a rude, common people's face, who did not have time to kneel down and fold his hands in prayer, looks at what is happening, literally opening his mouth in amazement. The artist is attentive to all these details, as they create the mood of the picture, like the flowers in a vase in the foreground, partially crumbling, and the embroidered robes of angels on the right, and the beautiful, light-filled landscape in the background.

When in 1483 the altar was brought across the sea to Florence, it amazed those who saw it and had a great influence on Italian painting.

Saint Benedict
HANS MEMLING
1487. Oil on wood. 45.5x34.5

The work of Rogier van der Weyden's student, Hans Memling, belonged to a new period in 15th-century Netherlandish painting, which was already under considerable Italian influence, as can be seen from the presented portrait.

Saint Benedict is the ancestor of Western monasticism and the author of the charter that formed the basis of his community. Memling depicted Benedict in a black monastic robe, with a staff, carefully reading the Bible. The saint seems to whisper divine words. The artist conveyed in the guise of this ascetic and hermit the expression that appears on the face of a person immersed in reading and admiring what is written. The soft black and white painting of the face and hands of St. Benedict even more makes you feel his image, the silence and concentration of which is echoed by the evening landscape outside the window.

Annunciation
MATTHIAS STOMER
1633–1637/1638 (?). Canvas, oil. 113x166

Mattias Stomer was one of those who are called "caravagists", that is, a follower of the Italian artist Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, whose painting the Dutchman could see during his stay in Naples. From him, Stomer adopted, among other things, the features of chiaroscuro, which he used in this picture.

The Virgin Mary and the Archangel Gabriel who appeared to Her are illuminated by the flame of a candle standing on the table, snatching their figures from the twilight of the room. The fluctuating light intensifies the tension of the whole scene, which is read in Mary's facial expression and Her gesture. Everything depicted by Stomer looks magical in this light. But the artist, resorting to this method of lighting, not only creates a mood, but also solves purely pictorial problems. The hands and faces of the characters acquire warmth, and it seems that through the transparent skin one can see the pulsation of blood. The viewer feels himself standing very close to this table, that is, a witness to what is happening. This effect was achieved in painting by Caravaggio himself, and everyone who was under his influence.

Portrait of Isabella Brant
PETER PAUL RUBENS
About 1625–1626. Canvas, oil. 86x62

An artist who created many canvases on which abundant flesh reigns, Rubens was at the same time the finest portrait painter. He wrote for the most part relatives and several times, such as, for example, his first wife Isabella Brant. This portrait was made by Rubens shortly before her death. After the death of his wife, he spoke of her like this in one of his letters: “Truly, I lost an excellent friend ... she was neither harsh nor weak, but so kind and so honest, so virtuous that everyone loved her alive and mourn the dead.”

But while the artist's faithful girlfriend is alive, he captures her young and attractive, with lively, intelligent eyes and a gentle smile. From Isabella, an invisible light seems to emanate. Rubens does not separate the carnal and the spiritual in man: the spirit wafts through matter. Therefore, the master tried in every possible way to emphasize the bodily beauty of his beloved, for example, he shaded her white delicate skin, as he often did, with a dark fur coat. The red background echoes the blush on the cheeks, and the necklace and lace create something like a precious setting for the wife so dear to the artist's heart.

Portrait of Marguerite of Lorraine, Duchess of Orleans
ANTONIS VAN DYCK
1634. Oil on canvas. 204x117

Anthony van Dyck portrayed many persons of the royal family, but, capturing them in solemn poses, he sought to convey the inner world of the depicted people.

The vertically elongated format characteristic of many paintings by this artist emphasizes the majesty and at the same time the sophistication of the depicted woman. White, like porcelain, Margarita's skin is shaded by a dark dress, and her beautifully shaped head, neck and hands with long fingers sorting through velvet fabric look even more elegant because of the splendor of the attire.

The canvas is designed in several colors - white, black, light brown, flesh, this discreet coloring is enlivened by the red drapery pushed aside and slightly opening the landscape spread out in the distance on the left. Roses in a girl's hand can symbolize love or emphasize her youth and attractiveness, which are especially visible even in a formal portrait.

HANS HOLBEIN THE JUNIOR

The portraits created by Hans Holbein are distinguished by great psychologism and, at the same time, by that measure of generalization that lifts the depicted above everyday life.

Sir Richard Southwell is represented in this painting, painted at the time when Holbein became court painter to Henry VIII. He served at court, was a member of parliament and a military man who participated in several campaigns. The neutral background and almost monochrome color scheme of the work allow the viewer to focus on the face of the depicted person. The artist accurately conveys all the details of Southwell's appearance, as well as his calm and confident character, which happens to people who have seen a lot in life. But the character of the picture, no matter how close to the viewer, is isolated from him: he is looking intensely into the distance, thinking about his own.

The ability to open the soul of a person and at the same time slightly elevate him distinguished Holbein as one of the masters of the Renaissance.

Adoration of the Magi
ALBRECHT DURER
1504. Oil on wood. 99x113.5

The German Renaissance artist Albrecht Dürer was commissioned by Elector Frederick the Wise of Saxony for the chapel of his castle in Wittenberg. Dürer had just returned from his first trip to Italy, so the features of northern European painting - a detailed depiction of details, bright, shining colors - coexist here with the influence of Italian painting, which was expressed in the perspective construction of the composition. In addition, the picture shows the ruins of ancient buildings, creating complex spatial plans, which again was typical of Italian painting.

The Adoration of the Magi is reminiscent of Leonardo da Vinci's unfinished painting of a similar subject, also kept in the Uffizi. But the Venetians had a direct influence on Durer - Andrea Mantegna with his passion for the abundance of stone in paintings and Giovanni Bellini with his light and clear painting. However, Durer's characters are written with the degree of psychologism that was especially characteristic of him.

The artist introduced touching moments into the scene of worship: the Infant Christ opens the casket, where the gold brought to Him by one of the Magi lies, with the curiosity with which all children are drawn to the unknown, and the old Magus looks at this child with a serious and inspired look, slightly tilting his head to one side. . Like many artists of the Northern Renaissance, Dürer does not deviate from the detail that the Magi came to Christ from different parts of the world, which means that there could be a black among them.

Despite the abundance of details, the picture is full of a sublime spirit, soft and at the same time solemn mood, which was characteristic of the painting of this German master.

Martyrdom of Saint Florian
ALBRECHT ALTDORFER
Around 1520. Oil on wood. 76x67

The work of the German Renaissance artist and head of the Danubian school, Albrecht Altdorfer, was part of a large painting cycle, now dispersed in various museums and representing scenes from the life of St. Florian.

Holy tradition says that this Roman soldier, who lived in the 3rd-4th centuries, secretly converted to Christianity and tried to save Christians from execution in the Upper Austrian lands, for which he was sentenced to death. They tied a stone around his neck and threw him into the river. Altdorfer depicted Florian kneeling on the bridge with a huge millstone tied around his neck. Torturers and just onlookers crowded around. The artist presented the whole scene as seen from below, which is why a breathtaking landscape opens up in the span of the bridge: the waters of the river are transparent, forming swirls around the supports, distant blue mountains are drowning in a sunny haze, and a castle can be seen at the top. The world in Altdorfer's paintings looks magically beautiful, even when he depicts martyrdom. Raising the whole scene compositionally, the painter thereby expressed the greatness of the feat accomplished by Florian, and the world shining around emphasizes the spiritual beauty of the saint.

self-portrait
HANS HOLBEIN THE JUNIOR
1542. Pastel on paper. 32x26

A small self-portrait of the artist was created with the meager means that Hans Holbein resorted to more and more often over the years. Usually in his portraits, models are depicted on a neutral background, but in this case it is golden, which is reminiscent of medieval art, where such a background symbolized heaven. This technique translates the entire image into a kind of sublime plan.

Holbein carefully conveyed the details of his own appearance: a broad face, slightly squinting eyes, a short fluffy beard and other features. Concentration, sincere interest are visible in his gaze, and, at the same time, this is the gaze of a person who sees everything around from a wide angle of view. This is how artists look at the world - both up close and embracing it as a huge panorama.

Portrait of Martin Luther and Philip Melanchthon
Lucas Cranach the Elder
1543. Oil on wood. 16x21

The German Renaissance painter and graphic artist Cranach worked for many years, until the end of his life, at the court of the Saxon elector Frederick the Wise. In Wittenberg, a city that, thanks to the efforts of its ruler, became one of the centers of European humanism, the artist became friends with the founder of German Protestantism and a prominent figure in the Reformation, Martin Luther, and his associate theologian Philip Melanchthon.

The master painted both portraits of his friends in the same style: he placed figures in dark robes against a neutral background and highlighted the faces of those portrayed. Luther, concentrated and resolute, looks into the distance, Melanchthon deepened into himself. The artist also conveyed the physiognomic features of each: one is plump, with a soft outline of the cheeks and neck and a stubborn chin, the second is thin, with sharp features. Cranach emphasizes in both, first of all, the human, individual beginning, which was especially important for the masters of the Northern Renaissance. Thanks to the artist's commitment to realism, the viewer can clearly imagine what these people who made history were like.
Portrait of the Countess de Chinchon.
FRANCISCO GOYA

The elongated format of the painting and the thickening darkness as a background give the figure of the countess a special fragility, emphasized by a light, airy dress of light gray-brown color with pink streaks and a hairdo in which the wind seems to be lurking. In the whole guise of a girl, even if of a royal family, one feels sadness, translucent both in her lively brown eyes and in her folded hands, which Maria Theresa, as if on purpose, is trying to squeeze tighter. The Countess then experienced not the best time in her life: her husband, the almighty Prime Minister of the Spanish government, Don Manuel Godoy, had an imperious character, in addition, this man was the queen's lover. Goya had already painted the countess, and now, knowing this young woman well and treating her with sympathy, he noticed her deeply hidden sadness. The portrait, conceived as a front door, shows the viewer a lively and charming person.
EL GRECO (DOMENIKOS THEOTOKOPULOS)
Around 1600. Oil on canvas. 110x86

El Greco's painting is sometimes attributed to Mannerism, sometimes to Baroque, in fact, it does not belong to any of the currents. The originality of the manner of this artist is expressed in the presented picture.

El Greco depicted on it St. John the Evangelist conversing with St. Francis. At John's feet is placed his symbol - an eagle, and in his hands the apostle holds a bowl from which a dragon crawls out. The master here recalls the story of how a disciple of Christ, preaching His word, was seized and sent to Rome, where he was given a cup of poison. After drinking it, John remained unharmed. In the picture, the bowl in the hand symbolizes the church, and the dragon, which over time replaced the snake in this iconography, is evil conquered by faith. An example of such a faith is Saint Francis.

The elongated figures of characters, typical of El Greco's painting, resemble flames above candles. The earth, stretching at the feet of the saints, emphasizes the scale of their images, and the background is the blue of heaven with dense clouds, along which John and Francis could ascend to heaven.

Portrait of Marie-Therese de Bourbon y Vallabriga on horseback
FRANCISCO GOYA
1783. Oil on canvas. 82х61

One of the most mysterious Spanish artists, Francisco Goya worked a lot at the royal court, where he also painted this portrait of Maria Teresa de Bourbon y Vallabriga, the future Countess de Chinchon, depicting her on horseback and against the backdrop of a mountainous landscape. Dark clouds are running across the sky, shadows from them are running across the earth, and nature is seized by that alarming state that happens on the eve of a storm. But the young woman is trying to be collected and firmly in the saddle. She is depicted in profile, which gives her appearance a certain sharpness.

However, the figure of the girl is written out with light strokes, the lace on her chest foams and the velvet of the dress shimmers. The face of Maria Theresa is touched by a blush, she all looks tender and reverent, surrounded by harsh nature with a rocky landscape and rocky mountains. Goya, who had a sincere interest in people, managed to express even in this sketch-like picture that fragility and at the same time the strength of a person, which cause a very warm feeling.

Born in Switzerland, Jean-Étienne Lyotard studied painting in France, then traveled and returned to Paris. There he acquired a patroness in the person of Madame de Pompadour, who set the tone in French high society. Since then, the artist has painted many beauties of the royal family and ladies who shone at court. One of these portraits represents Marie Adelaide of France, daughter of King Louis XV.

Lyotard depicted a charming young creature sitting on a sofa with a book in his hand and dressed in a Turkish costume. After several years spent in Constantinople, the artist had a fondness for oriental outfits and dressed up in them himself. Drawing Marie Adelaide, the painter conveyed the thin, velvety skin of the princess and the light fabric of her costume. The light from the window falls in such a way that the girl's face remains in shadow, and her cheek, small ear with a dangling earring and neck are illuminated, which makes the image even more tender and touching. The softness of the sofa cushions enhances the mood of bliss spilled in this picture, but at the same time, Lyotard introduced some “contradictions” into his work: Marie Adelaide, dressed as for a masquerade ball, sits on the sofa, immersed in reading, which is not enough corresponds to the fragrance of sensuality spilled around her. This counterpoint creates a slight tension in the picture, which was characteristic of Rococo art.
Girl with a shuttlecock
JEAN-BAPTISTE SIMEON CHARDIN
Around 1737. Oil on canvas. 82x66

The poetry of everyday life, its one and only moment - that's what Jean-Baptiste Chardin's painting rests on. He was an adherent of the everyday genre, raised to philosophical heights. The artist chose simple plots and forced the viewer to look at his paintings for a long time, as if at this “Girl with a shuttlecock”, where nothing seems to be happening, just a gentle creature, ruddy and snub-nosed, froze with a shuttlecock and a racket in her hands. On the face of the heroine there is a confused and sad expression, as if no one wants to partner with her or she is not very successful in the game. The impression is that you can see how her lips tremble and her eyes fill with tears. The experiences of almost a child echo in the viewer, who sees in this genre scene the beauty and complexity of life, expressed in small things.

Regarding this picture and another one - “A Boy with a Card Lock”, also located in the museum, - the artist’s fellow countryman, the French writer Stendhal, responded like this: “I stood and looked at them in that happy state that could only be ...”

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