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San Zaccaria Altarpiece
The San Zaccaria Altarpiece (also called Madonna Enthroned with Child and Saints) is a painting by the Italian Renaissance painter Giovanni Bellini, executed in 1505 and located in the church of San Zaccaria, Venice.
The patron of the altarpiece is unknown. It is Bellini's first work in which the influence of Giorgione is undeniable, starting the last phase in the artist's career, a tonalist one. The Altarpiece has stayed in site (in situ) in the church since it was completed in 1505. The work was mentioned in 1648 by writer and painter Carlo Ridolfi as a large panel commissioned in memory of Venetian politician and diplomat Pietro Cappello; he described it as "one of the most beautiful and delicate by the artist".
A later story has now been intertwined with the work and repeated in many sources: in 1648, the writer and painter Carlo Ridolfi remarked that the work had been commissioned in memory of Pietro Capello (Cappello), a Venetian politician and diplomat, describing it as "one of the most beautiful and delicate by the artist". However, Pietro Capello died in 1523, long after Giovanni Bellini's completion of the altarpiece in 1505. Pietro Capello is interred in the Church of San Zaccaria and above his tomb was adorned with a painting made around 1500 that was created in the workshop of Giovanni Bellini, but it showed the Presentation in the Temple (titled the Circumcision and now in the National Gallery of Art, London), not the Virgin and Child enthroned.
To the left of the music-playing angel is a small plaque, known as a cartellino, where Bellini signed and dated the work: "IOANNES BELLIVUS / MCCCCCV" (Giovanni Bellini, 1505).
The work is set in a large niche, depicting a sacred conversation within an established scheme: the Madonna and Child enthroned, a musician angel on a step and four saints placed symmetrically at the sides. They are St. Peter the Apostle, St. Catherine of Alexandria, St. Lucy and St. Jerome.
While the general ensemble is not different from previous works, such as the San Giobbe Altarpiece (which shares the apse with mosaics, for example), Bellini introduced some novelties, such as the side openings with landscape, inspired by Alvise Vivarini Battutii Altarpiece, once in Belluno (now lost). The colors and light show the new adherence of Bellini to Giorgione's color and mood style.[citation needed]
The egg above Mary's head is a symbol of the creation, perhaps a citation of Piero della Francesca's Brera Altarpiece. The lucerne below recalls Andrea Mantegna's San Zeno Altarpiece.[citation needed]
The altarpiece was painted using tempera and oil on wood. Tempera is an egg based painting substance that dries quickly making it easy to use and layer over, a popular choice among artists during the period. Bellini also used some oil paints to create more definition with depth, soft edges, tone transitions, and better color pigments.
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San Zaccaria Altarpiece
The San Zaccaria Altarpiece (also called Madonna Enthroned with Child and Saints) is a painting by the Italian Renaissance painter Giovanni Bellini, executed in 1505 and located in the church of San Zaccaria, Venice.
The patron of the altarpiece is unknown. It is Bellini's first work in which the influence of Giorgione is undeniable, starting the last phase in the artist's career, a tonalist one. The Altarpiece has stayed in site (in situ) in the church since it was completed in 1505. The work was mentioned in 1648 by writer and painter Carlo Ridolfi as a large panel commissioned in memory of Venetian politician and diplomat Pietro Cappello; he described it as "one of the most beautiful and delicate by the artist".
A later story has now been intertwined with the work and repeated in many sources: in 1648, the writer and painter Carlo Ridolfi remarked that the work had been commissioned in memory of Pietro Capello (Cappello), a Venetian politician and diplomat, describing it as "one of the most beautiful and delicate by the artist". However, Pietro Capello died in 1523, long after Giovanni Bellini's completion of the altarpiece in 1505. Pietro Capello is interred in the Church of San Zaccaria and above his tomb was adorned with a painting made around 1500 that was created in the workshop of Giovanni Bellini, but it showed the Presentation in the Temple (titled the Circumcision and now in the National Gallery of Art, London), not the Virgin and Child enthroned.
To the left of the music-playing angel is a small plaque, known as a cartellino, where Bellini signed and dated the work: "IOANNES BELLIVUS / MCCCCCV" (Giovanni Bellini, 1505).
The work is set in a large niche, depicting a sacred conversation within an established scheme: the Madonna and Child enthroned, a musician angel on a step and four saints placed symmetrically at the sides. They are St. Peter the Apostle, St. Catherine of Alexandria, St. Lucy and St. Jerome.
While the general ensemble is not different from previous works, such as the San Giobbe Altarpiece (which shares the apse with mosaics, for example), Bellini introduced some novelties, such as the side openings with landscape, inspired by Alvise Vivarini Battutii Altarpiece, once in Belluno (now lost). The colors and light show the new adherence of Bellini to Giorgione's color and mood style.[citation needed]
The egg above Mary's head is a symbol of the creation, perhaps a citation of Piero della Francesca's Brera Altarpiece. The lucerne below recalls Andrea Mantegna's San Zeno Altarpiece.[citation needed]
The altarpiece was painted using tempera and oil on wood. Tempera is an egg based painting substance that dries quickly making it easy to use and layer over, a popular choice among artists during the period. Bellini also used some oil paints to create more definition with depth, soft edges, tone transitions, and better color pigments.