It is difficult to imagine a more spectacular surprise on the outskirts of Naples, amidst the "architettura fascista" of the cities notoriously ugly preferia (suburbs), than the Reggia (Royal Palace) of Caserta. FacadeReggia di Caserta Though Charles VII initiated construction on the palace, he was never to spend one night in the structure. [...]
It was during a recent visit to the Alte Pinakothek in Munich that I encountered The Annunciation by an artist whose name I did not recognize: Fra Carnevale. Portrait Fra Carnevale1470Artist Unknown My curiosity was roused and I began to research this little known, reclusive, Renaissance artist. Between the years 1420 and 1425, [...]
She is a beauty, Napoli. From a coastline that wraps beneath Vesuvius toward the long outstretched arm of the Sorrentine peninsula, it is blessed by an ethereal natural splendor. Awaiting those who venture even farther south than Sorrento is the spectacular, rugged coastline of the cerulean sea-washed Amalfi Coast. Such proximate beauty, such struggle, such [...]
In 1453, Andrea Mantegna married Nicolosia Bellini, the sister of Giovanni Bellini, a member of a famous family of Venetian painters. Sometime in the following years, and before Mantegna’s departure for Mantua in 1460, he completed his tempera on canvas work, Presentation at the Temple. In this unique work, Mantegna has portrayed members of his [...]
Fillipino LippiExorcism of the Demon in the Temple of MarsStrozzi ChapelSanta Maria NovellaFlorence Fillipino Lippi created one of the most complex frescoes of the Renaissance in the Strozzi Chapel of Santa Maria Novella in Florence. By some it is called the Exorcism of the Demon in the Temple of Mars. By others, the [...]
Head of a Cleric1448Workshop of Ghirlandaio The pensive face of a cleric peers away from us in a little known sketch created in the workshop of Fra Angelico. Yet another mystery confronts us as we consider whether this was created by the Dominican Brother himself, or by a student of his workshop. The [...]
Jacopo da Pontormo1525 - 1528Santa Felicita, FlorenceCapponi Chapel The eyes are haunting: oval, staring in pain and grief. It is the fresco that initiated Mannerist painting in Florence: Pontormo's Deposition in the Capponi Chapel of Santa Felicita. Jacopo Carucci, known as Jacopo da Pontormo or, simply, Pontormo, was born in 1494. A student [...]
Torment of St. AnthonyMichelangeloca. 1488 A young Michelangelo, barely twelve years of age, copied an engraving while in the workshops of Domenico Ghirlandaio. I never would have guessed this to be a work by the same master who painted the Doni Tondo, or the frescoes of the Sistine Chapel. Originally attributed to 'a [...]
Dome InteriorSt. Peter;'s BasilicaRome Many readers have asked about the recent announcement regarding Pope Benedict XVI's resignation. Confusion reigns about how many popes have, indeed, resigned. In response to inquiry, and with research into church records, here is a summary of those who have voluntarily left their office. •Pope Gregory VI - 1046 [...]
Rondanini Pieta1564 The burdens of life and the support of a son for his suffering mother fuse in Michelangelo's final sculpture, the Rondanini Pieta. It is believed that Buonarotti began work on this final pieta in the mid-1550's, not long after he first brought chisel to stone on what is known as the [...]
