Cimabue

Shimabue was an Italian painter born in Florence in 1240 and died in Pisa in 1302. He was undoubtedly one of the greatest artistic figures of his time, and was mentioned by Vasari among others. whom he identified as the first painter to depart from the harsh, clumsy, and ordinary Greek manner, rediscovering the principle of good drawing. Indeed, having as a basis the technical tools of the Byzantine tradition, refinement in design and use of color, compositional harmony, precise iconographic rules Shimabue's artistic journey evolved toward a style of painting closer to reality, Thus I learn the path to the renewal of the Trecento. The oldest work attributed to Shimabue is the cross executed for the church of San Domenico in Arezzo. In this work, the suffering Christ is depicted as a sinuous, elegant, and elongated figure, Note, despite its robustness, the expansion of the thoracic cavity and the bull-like neck. It retains the typically Byzantine anatomical definition, which divides the body into three distinct parts. The belly is divided into three parts, like a swollen sack with two horizontal ties and one vertical one. The muscles are stylized, and the corners of the eyes and mouth are elongated to emphasize suffering. But in the flesh of Christ, the painter has attempted a chiaroscuro modulation, through filaments of extremely fine parallel brushstrokes, giving the epidermis a nearly natural vibration. The cross with retina is also a work of great brilliance, especially considering the gilding of Christ's loincloth, instead of stiffening it, it enhances the softness of the drapery and the refinement of the knot. The research initiated in Arezzo continues with the other major cross attributed to Cimabue. Carried out for the Franciscan church of Santa Croce, It is unfortunately marred by the flood that devastated Florence in 1966. Compared to the crucifix from Arezzo, the body of Christ exhibits greater torsion. Moreover, the rigid, stylized anatomical features characteristic of Byzantine art disappear, in favor of greater naturalism. For example, the muscles of the arm and forearm, They are no longer stylized with sharp, semicircular lines separating them at elbow distance. In the same way, the belly is no longer geometrically divided into three parts, my painting with an attempt at anatomical accuracy. It further refines the chiaroscuro technique, unknown to the Byzantine tradition. The soft flesh tone is an even more precise interweaving of delicate filaments and translucencies. which break down a tone into its various levels of luminosity. Christ's loincloth, treated with refined effects of transparency, Become an extremely lightweight fabric that reveals the thigh's volume subtly. The Christ of Santa Croce is no longer unique or abstract, but strikes with its immediate truth, with the softness of the modeling and the sharpness of realistic observations, which make the image of the lifeless body hanging from the cross particularly lifelike. Having become the painter by delight of the Franciscans, Cimabue initiated the major project of decorating the Upper Basilica of Saint Francis in Assisi, It will be the most important and vibrant shipyard in Italy in the last decades of the 2000s. The large crucifixion painting in the upper southern transept of the Basilica Confirm the innovative characteristics of Cimabue's research. The work is today very deteriorated, due to the detachment of the dry-painted elements and the chemical alteration of the chalk that is white paint based on lead. The highly expressive line initiated by the previous crucifixes here reaches maturity, with the figure of Christ standing alone at the center of the composition, with a colossal body pathetically arched and seemingly exhausted, The loincloth fluttering in the wind, surrounded by angels agitating in the sky. Below, on either side of the cross, the flesh crowds together. In the foreground, on the left, the Virgin, the two Marys, and Saint John express intense but composed sorrow. While Maddalena desperately stretched her arms upward as if they were cries or tearing apart. His arms are drawn toward those of two other figures on the opposite side. Thus, the vertical tension is accentuated, which characterizes the center of this composition. And the viewer's gaze is directed upward, toward Christ, the central focus of the composition itself. In the majesty painted by Cimabue for the Florentine church of Santa Trinità, It is evident that the artist possesses the ability to renew tradition from both a formal and iconographic standpoint. Thus I learn the way to Giotto's innovations. The throne is a three-dimensional, solid, and imposing structure. On the hips, opening like a book, revealing the inner faces. The angels are arranged according to the Byzantine scheme on either side of the throne. Yet they do not overlap one another, but are instead staggered in depth, one behind the other. The steps feature a concave profile, suggesting a sense of spatiality. They serve to create the niches in the pedestal from which the two prophets, Jeremiah and Isaiah, emerge. The patriarch Abraham and the king David, passionately debating with each other through gestures and glances. The inclination of the heads serves to indicate the angels' orientation toward Mary. Before Giotto, in fact, the profile was used only to depict villains. The smiling face of the Virgin, breaking with traditional expressive rigidity, It dialogues with the observer, and the relationship between mother and son is sketched with tenderness and humanity. The volume of the bodies is also rendered with greater realism, thanks to the flowing drapes that fall softly into wide folds, without the abstract wrapping effect that was present previously.