Analysis of Renaissance Paintings at Uffizi Gallery

I had the pleasure of virtually visiting the Uffizi Art Gallery in Florence, Italy. Uffizi is among the most important galleries globally, so I made a point of visiting to see what makes this space special and unique. Designed and constructed between 1560 and 1580 by Giorgio Vasari, Uffizi is popularly known for its authentic collection of paintings and sculptures from the middle ages to the contemporary age. Some of the paintings housed in this gallery include works by famous artists such as Piero della Francesca, Beato Angelico, Filippo Lippi, Michelangelo, Botticelli, Simone Martini, and Giotto, among others. It also exhibits paintings by other popular works by European painters who were mainly Flemish, Dutch, and German. The gallery also boasts of other invaluable collections of ancient busts and statues from the Medici family. It is a collection of sculptures, paintings, and other forms of media spinning from the 13th and 20th centuries. During the visit, four Renaissance pieces caught my attention and prompted me to know more about them. This paper reviews four renaissance paintings in the Uffizi gallery with a focus on their composition and meaning.

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Portrait of a Young Man

The Portrait of a Young man is a painting by Renaissance artist named Raffaello Sanzio. Created between 1513 and 1514, the painting is often presumed to be a self-portrait of Raffaelo, and it is regarded as among the most important piece since World War II (Southgate 2551). This painting sits in oil on panel. The painting is often viewed as Raphael's portrait because the facial features are compatible and identical to another self-portrait by Raphael in his painting The School of Athens, which is located at the Vatican. However, if it is indeed Raphael's self-portrait, he gives no clue about his profession as it only shows a confidently poised and richly dresses young man (Southgate 2551). The painting was created in black and white colors, and no colored versions had been made before it was stolen during the Second World War by Poland Germans.

Like a High Renaissance portrait, Raphael emphasizes an erect pose, stunt texture, gesture, softened form, and proper ornaments (See Fig 1). All the attributes were a representation of the mannerist expression combined with the noble class style, which was popular in southern Italy during and after Raphael's death (Southgate 2552). The textural details such as the flesh-colored wall, wavy dark hair, and brown fur all strike a sensitive, neo-classical balance between real nature and humanity (See Fig 1). They also extend some of the gestures seen in previous feminine placements to emphasize a man's role and a traveling human (Grabski 217).

In the painting, the artist humanized the male gender by ensuring that the ribbon of the sleeves, landscape, and the hazy edges around the hair represented each gender's interchangeability. The man in the painting has his left hand placed close to his heart to show passion and self-identity (Grabski 217). The painter also utilized contrasting colors of pure white and sable to intensify the harmony between heaven and earth (see Fig 1). It is possible that Raphael's approach to the idealized human representation was based on his study of ancient military and athletic heroes in classical works such as Augustus of Prima Porta and Doryphoros (Grabski 219). It serves to show the image of an ideal man as dictated by society during that time. To date, the painting is still considered the most important missing piece of art after WWII, and it is suggested that if found, it would be worth about $850 today.

Supper at Emmaus

This is a painting in which artist Jacopo Pontromo made the canvas for the Galluzo Carthusian monastery, where he was employed between 1523 and 1527. Supper at Emmaus depicts the period in which Jesus Christ repeats the act of breaking bread that he made during the last supper (Pericolo 522). It was during this period that two of Jesus' disciples recognized him as the risen king. Located in Raphael and Andrea del Sarto's room at the Uffizi gallery, it depicts Pontormo's early works as influenced by Michelangelo.

The painting shows the artist's restless and vibrant technique based on new compositional and psychological tension (Pericolo 522). It also has a northern descent incisiveness derived from the Durer prints, which would later be developed in his other works and exacerbated in his final artistic career, which shows the most haunted mannerism phase. After fleeing from the plague that raged through Florence, Pontormo took refuge in the Galluzzo monastery. He started working on the fresco cycles with the passionate stories on the main cloister's lunette window (Pericolo 534). His completion of the cycle was so impressive that he was commissioned by the house to paint the Supper at Emmaus for the guest rooms.

The painting shows Jesus after the resurrection, dressed as a traveler who met two of his disciples from Emmaus (Bilenkina 646). However, the disciples could not recognize him until supper when he blessed the bread, broke it, and gave it to them at the table. The composition's layout is centered on the image of Christ as he breaks and blesses the bread (Bilenkina 646). His revelation to the disciples is highlighted by the light beam that illuminates his face. The table is highlighted with simple naturalism elements such as clear glasses, metal jug, and cats and dogs beneath the table waiting for the leftovers (See Fig 2).

The chapter house monks are in the dark background to witness the sacred act. The painting has God's divine eye at the top to signify God the father and is placed inside the trinity triangle (See Fig 2). This detail of art results from the painting's posthumous work to conceal the authentic three-sided face that represented the trinity, as prohibited by the Counter-Reformation.

Madonna with Child and Two Angels

This artwork by Filippo Lippi was painted in 1465 and is among the masterpieces of the Renaissance period that were greatly admired. The canvas painting is located at the Filippo Lippi Hall at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence and is among the greatest works of art in Renaissance history (Colombi 142). Standing on a panel at 100cmx71cm, this painting resembles several other paintings by famous artists in elements of depiction and composition.

This piece of art tells an interesting narrative about Lippi because he was a monk who was not entirely devoted to his religious tasks (Colombi 142). He fell in love with Sister Lucrezia Buti, who returned his love, and the two engaged in a secret affair. When the affair was discovered, they were forced to renounce their religious duties, and they got married and had a son and daughter. Lippi later became an excellent painter following in his father's footsteps (Colombi 147). This painting's popularity stems from the fact that the Madonna image may be Lucrezia's portrait.

In the painting, Madonna is depicted playing with a child who is supported by two angels. The angels' faces are mischievous, making them look like young boys or two rascals (See Fig 3). The immediate angel's gaze is made to appear as if he is looking at the viewer of the painting (Rusnak 54). Behind the angels is a beautiful landscape that is Flemish painting's inspiration. Madonna's hair is elegantly embellished with a veil and pearls, and her expression shows a sense of contemplation as she plays with the child (See Fig 3). This painting and its components leave an overwhelming feeling that this artwork has more meaning than what can be seen by the eye. It is perhaps a depiction of God's power or the power of another distinct force (Rusnak 57).

The background also bears a symbolic meaning that many viewers may overlook. The painter created the allusion of the Hortus Conclus, which means the enclosed garden. This point touches Mary's virginity and underlines Lippi's every idea on his panel to maximize each painting's symbolic impact (Rusnak 57). The composition's sweetness and the gracefulness of Madonna's veil and hairdressing would become the symbol of elegance and beauty for many other painters such as Botticelli.

The Venus of Urbino

Also known as the Reclining Venus, the Venus of Urbino is an oil painting by Titian, which was completed in 1534 and sold in 1538. Located at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, the painting depicts a woman identified with Venus, the goddess reclined on a bed in the elegant surroundings of a renaissance palace (McIver 30). For 21 years, Titian contracted for Ippolito de' Medici and was made a cardinal by his uncle Pope Clement VII. In 1532, Ippolito spent the night with Angela del Moro, a popular courtesan in Venice and Aretino's and Titian's dining companion. After painting Ippolito's portrait, Titan added a nude portrait of Angela with hopes that Ippolito would like it.

However, Ippolito died in 1534 and never got to see the painting (McIver 30). Titian stored the painting in his studio until 1538, when Guidobaldo II Della Rovere posed for a portrait. Guidobaldo purchased the painting a few months later and simply referred to it as The Nude Woman (McIver 33). Later, Guidobaldo inherited the Dutch or Urbino following his father's death and gave the painting the name The Venus of Urbino.

In the painting, Titian domesticated the woman by placing her in an indoor setting to engage with the viewer with her explicit sensuality (See Fig 4). Some viewers argue that the woman is seen to be masturbating. Venus stares directly at the viewer as if oblivious of her nudity. She holds a bunch of roses in her right hand and places her other hand over her genitals. In the background, there is a dog, which may be seen to represent fidelity (See Fig 4). Also, in the background, two maids are pictured rummaging through a chest full of clothes.

Some viewers have references from the painting to marriage in detail, such as the chest drawer where the bride stored clothes given to her by her husband's relatives (Ginzburg et al. 15). The hand on the genitals is said to show masturbation, which was necessary to induce orgasm vital for conception to occur (Ginzburg et al. 15). The dog is also said to be a representation of family because a similar dog is present in Titian's painting of the duke's mother. The dog identifies that the house is the Della Rovere home, and the viewer is most likely the woman's husband.

Works Cited

Bilenkina, Anastasia K. "The Concept of "imitation" in the Graphic Heritage of Jacopo Pontormo." The Actual Problems of History and Theory of Art 9 (2019): 644-650.

Colombi, Martina. "The Madonna and Child with Saints Francis and Dominic and Angels by Giulio Cesare Procaccini: A Masterpiece from the Archinto Collection." Metropolitan Museum Journal 52.1 (2017): 142-147.

Ginzburg, Carlo, et al. Titian's" Venus of Urbino." Ed. Rona Goffen. Cambridge University Press, 1997. 15-16

Grabski, Jozef. "The Lost" Portrait of a Young Man"(Attributed to Raphael) from the Collection of the Princes Czartoryski Family in Cracow. A Contribution to Studies on the Typology of the Renaissance Portrait." Artibus et Historiae (2004): 215-239.

McIver, Katherine A. "Visual pleasures, sensual sounds: Music, morality, and sexuality in paintings by Titian." Sexualities, Textualities, Art, and Music in Early Modern Italy. Routledge, 2017. 29-38.

Pericolo, Lorenzo. "Visualizing Appearance and Disappearance: On Caravaggio's London Supper at Emmaus." The Art Bulletin 89.3 (2007): 519-539.

Rusnak, Rastislav. "Madonna and Child from Kosice: Reflections of the Italian Renaissance in the Find of a Relief Mould." Umeni/Art 67 (2019).

Southgate, M. Therese. "Portrait of a Young Man in Red." JAMA 292.21 (2004): 2551-2551.

Appendix

A: Portrait of a Young Man

Fig 1: Portrait of a Young Man. Source (https://www.uffizi.it/en/artworks/por...