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Compare and Contrast, Visual Analysis

Autor:   •  April 5, 2018  •  1,673 Words (7 Pages)  •  728 Views

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All of the figures in the painting have halo’s, except for the man kneeling. Although Mary and Christ are the center of the composition, most of the figures are looking toward the kneeling figure in a clerical dress at lower left of the painting. The figures, are all placed on top of a darkly painted background, where they seem to be floating in space. Although the background is hard to make sense of, it seems to be painted to look as if it were a landscape. Because of the lack of details, dark values, and lost horizon line, the figures all seem to be floating in space. The original function remains a mystery but is thought to be the trays presented as gifts to new mothers in fifteenth-century Florence.

These works of art have a lot of similarities within them. The paintings by Lotto and Angelico both have extremely religious influences to them and show that in the subject matter. The religious influences in both paintings consisting of halos, crucifixes, praying, and many smaller religious symbols. They also share the idea of having certain figures painted without a halo. The paintings have more in common than subject matter though, they both contain bright, vibrant colors. They also consist of strong, deep earthy tones and of earthy backgrounds. Although at first glance the paintings seem to have a lot in common, they may have more differences.

The differences in the paintings seem to outweigh the amount of similarities that they were originally thought to have. The paintings have different ways, or styles, of being painted. The painting by Lotto seems to be painted in a Humanist/Naturalist style whereas the painting by Angelico had been painted in a Byzantine/Gothic style. Although, this is not unexpected, considering the time period that the paintings had been created in. Because the painting by Lotto has a Naturalistic style to it, it is unsurprising that all the figures in the painting seem to be true to life. Whereas, because of its Byzantine styled painting, Angelico’s painting has a very similar facial quality to the figures. All of the surrounding female figures have similar faces to each other. Although, the men in the painting all have differentiated faces. They both seem to use directional lines differently as well. In Lotto’s painting, there are 3 different ways he uses directional lines to connect the viewers eye to Christ. The first line starts with the flower, which leans onto the top of Christ’s head. Because of the similar shoulder height in the figures, Christ leads the viewer’s which towards Mary, and then Saint Jerome. The second line starts at the beginning of the curtain which leads you directly to Christ, and Christ’s foot leads you to the edge of the painting. And lastly the horizontal line of the mountains lead the viewer’s eyes to the curtain, which then leads their eyes to Christ. In every case, Christ becomes the main focal point in every scenario. In Angelico’s painting the fame, and shape of the frame does a lot of the directional line’s work. Because the painting is in an octagonal shape, each of the joined edges serves as an accessible line into the painting. The figures in the painting, and where they are looking also does a lot of the directional line’s work. They are all towards the kneeling figure on the bottom left. These leading lines help direct the viewer’s eye to where they should be paying attention to. The symmetrical composition of the painting makes the viewers eyes go directly towards the center of the painting, which is Christ. His gaze in the painting is extremely important because it directs the viewer’s where to look and what to be paying attention to, to understand the subject matter of the painting. The leading lines in Angelico’s painting is not nearly as effective as Lotto’s painting, because the lines do not seem to follow such a strategic pattern.

Although these paintings are very similar within subject matter, their differences outweigh their similarities. The use of small details really makes the paintings extremely different. The styles of both of the paintings, the directional lines, and intention of uses all contribute to their differences. Although, the subject matter had extreme religious influences, which can be seen almost immediately. So, although a painting may look extremely similar in the museum, with a lot of looking, viewers can see the differences the paintings really have. This is important to pay attention to with every piece, but these two are a great example of looking deeper into a painting.

“Virgin and Child with Saints Jerome and Nicholas of Tolentino,” by Lorenzo Lotto in 1523–24.

“Virgin and Child Enthroned with Saints Peter, Paul and George (?), Four Angels, and a Donor,” by Fra Angelico in 1446-49.

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