Tags
1400s, 15th Century, art, Artists, Florence, Italy, Painters, Paintings, Piero della Francesca, Religious, Renaissance
Name: Piero della Francesca
Work: Painter
Born: 1415
Died: 1492
Worked In: Florence, Italy
Period: Early Italian Renaissance
Influences: Masaccio, Paolo Uccello
What I have learnt about his work in general:
Piero della Francesca painted religious art with a sense of serene simplicity, achieved through the use of a cool colour palette and a clarity of line and form. He also had a great interest in geometry and mathematics which is evident in his use of perspective and geometric compositions.
Baptism of Christ, Piero della Francesca
Tempera on panel
~1450-60
National Gallery, London
My interpretation of this painting:
This painting portrays Christ’s baptism by John. The cool colours and simple composition of the scene create a peaceful and meditative feel, and the focus on nature (the tree and the landscape in the background) also adds to the sense of serenity. Piero’s interest in geometry is evident through the central line of symmetry on the line of the dove, bowl and Christ. The line of the tree also creates the golden ratio (1:2) which was believed by many Renaissance artists to create aesthetic beauty. The foreshorterned dove demonstrates Piero’s mastery of perspective.
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