Stone Sculpture Museo dell’Opera Florence Italy

Dear Art Lover,

     I hope you are not tired of these posts from my visit to the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo in Florence, Italy.  Today, I thought I would share with you some more of the stone carvings.  I really would like to know more about how so much carving of stone was done before the days of electricity.  Some of this stone is not that soft!

      For example, look at this large tub.  I apologize for not reading the label (or in this case, even photographing it for review later).  I might have understood what the tub was used for:  Is it a fountain basin for the local water supply?  Was it a marble bathtub?  Was it a coffin for a child?  That latter does not seem likely since the bas relief designs on the front do not seem consistent.  In any event, notice how much decoration there is!  Lots of architecture houses the human figures and aids in the feeling of symmetry.  Note that the figures are purposely out of proportion to one another, all for the sake of design and decoration.  I love the figure emerging from the slightly opened door.  It adds some action to the otherwise static composition.

     These others just made me smile.  The grouping with the Madonna and Child seems normal, but then, look at the gesture and expression of the figure on the right.  How funny is that?  While the others are interested in what’s up, this guy is looking down on us little people and appears to be aware of us and waving hello.

  And this other, rather dissolved looking couple struck me as smooching and was unexpected among religious themes (is that not sad?).  Anyway, see what you think.

Peace,

Kelly

~ Kelly Borsheim, sculptor, painter, writer, teacher

Niccolò Barabino Painter Florence Italy

 Dear Art Lover,

     In the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo in Florence, Italy, I discovered an artist to admire.  I had never before heard of Niccolò Barabino (1831–1891), but I think his painting in the museum is fantastic.  I share it with you here.  It is titled, Christ Enthroned with Mary and Florentine Saints and was created from 1882 to 1883.

    The composition is brilliant and I admired so many things that I see as definitely intentional.  The composition is set up as symmetrical, but then the variations create a situation that hardly leaves one with a feeling of repetition.  Christ at the center, with the largest area of white or light colors is no doubt the subject of the painting.  The lilies in their vase serve as an obvious pointer, in case our eyes could forget.  The vertical columns on either side of him lend a strength and stability, and even a calming effect (assurance of a sense of well-being?) to the painting.

     The figures on the left are all aligned mostly horizontally in their halos, yet there is enough of a change that there is no stiffness in the postures of the figures or their relationships to one another, while the diagonally line of the figures are right (and continued by the raised arm of Christ) serve to point to our subject. 

     I enjoyed the perspective in the scene, as well as the 3-dimensionally painted dark niche behind Christ’s figure that really helps to again, put the focus on him.  I like how he plays the lights and darks against one another to emphasize (or play down) each of the personalities of the saints while never losing sight of compositional interest.

     One might think that red is such a strong color that an artist would be a fool to paint the only really large red shape off to one side. But if you look, you will see that he has spread around the staircase and the right background enough of this same muted red serves as a sculptural base or even a frame (if you count the darker, cooler reds in the niche behind Christ’s head).  The artist has done the same thing with the whites or light shapes in the composition.  Christ receives the largest and most eye-catching white shape in his robes.  However, the worshiping figures each contain a figure in “white,” but they do not take up as much real estate and are beautifully designed to strengthen the composition.

     I love it that the faces are individuals and beautiful.  I also love it that the artist snuck in a half-dressed man next to the nun.  Each character’s head is different, in hair style or hat or veil… lovely variety! 

     Anyway, I truly admire this work of art and I am glad that the next time I walk past the Duomo, I will look more closely at the painting under the same-shaped arches and hope to see more of Niccolò Barabino’s paintings. 

     If you would like to learn more of this artist, this may be a decent start: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicol%C3%B2_Barabino

Peace,

Kelly

~ Kelly Borsheim, sculptor, painter, writer, teacher

http://BorsheimArts.com

Florence Museo dell’Opera Stone Fragments Mosaic

Dear Art Lover,

     Fragments tend to interest me sometimes more than “perfect compositions.”  Maybe it is the idea of “less is more,” but I tend to think it has more to do with the simultaneous feeling of mystery (what did it look like originally when complete?) with education.  With fragments, one can often understand more about the process used… in a sense:  removing a mystery, albeit a different one.

  

     Here, I am still in the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo in Florence, Italy.  Here is what the museum wrote for the display titled, “Fragments of Magnificence.” 

“During demolition of the unfinished medieval Cathedral façade in 1587, most of the surface decoration was lost; the few surviving fragments are shown in this room.  Among these are pieces found while excavation beneath the nave of the Santa Maria del Fiore to uncover the remains of the old cathedral, Santa Reparata.  In the course of those excavations in 1965-1973, the pavement of the new Cathedral had to be removed, and on the underside of some white marble slabs 14^th-century decoration came to light, confirming that the Opera del Duomo had recycled its costly stone to suit the needs of an evolving project.
     The carves slabs and those with colored and gold mosaic inserts made the Duomo façade an image of the heavenly Jerusalem described in the New Testament, whose walls are made of precious stones (Revelation 21, 18-21).  Especially at sunset, when the Cathedral front glows in the waning light, the allusion to that future city must have been clear.”

   Enjoy.

What might look like popcorn under the mosaic is actually marble.

     I am not above taking a donation.  Even five bucks is a help, if you enjoy what you read about and see in my images here on this blog.  Thank you.  [You may make a donation via the PayPal links on the side bar on the blog site:  http://artbyborsheim.blogspot.com ]

Peace,

Kelly

~ Kelly Borsheim, sculptor, painter, writer, teacher

Hi-Res Scan Baptistry Florence Italy

Dear Art Lover,

     In my quest to find a hi-res scanner (without rollers contacting the art) for all of the professional painters in Firenze, I found this little gem! 

     The film is amazing and I can guarantee that I never saw the underground part of the Baptistry for the price of my ticket some time ago.  This is so cool: 

 http://ucsdnews.ucsd.edu/pressrelease/making_the_past_present_with_light_warmth_and_a_high_tech_gaze
 

     Most people know that the Baptistry and even the famous Duomo (Cathedral) of Florence, Italy, were built upon Roman ruins.  Why not? So many other places in and out of Italy have Roman pasts!  I found this video truly incredible.

     Anyway, my search for a Cruse Scanner here in Italia whose use is available to professional contemporary artists continues.  I went to an Open Studio this morning for the Palazzo dei Pittori [Palace of the Painters], which is almost never open to the public, according to my Florentine sister who went with me.  We spoke to a man about some scanning, so I have a new contact.  Sadly, thus far  my search turned up a Cruse in Pisa, but it is only allowed for restoration work… and usually of dead artists.  Boh!  How can this be so hard in Italia to find?

Anyway, the big news now:

Happy birthday, DAD! 

Peace, 

Kelly Borsheim, artista

Cathedral Bergamo Italy

Dear Art-loving friend,

My last post for a while on the city of Bergamo, Italy:  This is mostly about the Cathedral there.  I must admit that I had to do a search on Google:  “What’s the difference between a Cathedral and a Basilica?”  [See my previous post for images of the Basilica in Bergamo.]    

A “basilica” is a word of Roman origin and describes a large public building used for business.  Later, the Christians (Catholics) adopted the word for their own use as a title for a specific kind of church.  Hmmm… interesting connection!  In any event, today the Catholics use this word as a title signifying rank.  There are different levels of basilicas, apparently, but the highest rank is that of Cathedral (“Duomo” in Italian). 

The designation “cathedral” tells you that the bishop of the local order has a throne inside of that church or basilica. The origin of that word is French and Latin and refers to the “seat” or “chair.”  It is the home church for the bishop of that region.  The terms 'basilica" and "cathedral" need not overlap, but they often do.  However, there is only one Duomo in each city, that I have ever come across at least.  [I am certainly no expert on many things Christian or Catholic, including how the boundaries of diocese are drawn.]

In any event, both a basilica and a cathedral / duomo are worth a visit if you are a lover of art.  The Cathedral of Bergamo offers a few things I have never or rarely seen in a church.  Enjoy these images, with a few captions where I thought the image could benefit.  I start here with the outside view of the Cathedral.  I enjoy the composition of dark bronze with light stone.

There was a calming simplicity to the compositions in the Duomo that I found eased my senses, as compared to the nearby Basilica.

I do not recall having seen a marble carving of a decapitation WITHIN a Duomo before.  I assume this is Judith.  Her image is a favorite with Italians, a strong woman (innocence and physical weakness) overcomes a mightier and evil strength... the female version of David, if you like.  Hers was an act that was certainly more personally courageous (to cut off a head up close vs. kill from a distance with a stone).  Both are horrible, but it is a brutal world, isn't it?

So many colorful marbles!  Dizzyingly spectacular mosaic work, even in 3-D!

It is not often that one sees a bed in a cathedral.  This unusual aerial perspective on a very large painting employs a dramatic diagonal (implying action) and good placement of the bright blues to surround the subject.  The angel in subdued light and the raised arm of the holy figure near the center are just two of the compositional pointers to the center of one's attention.  And interesting "Z" of light... I enjoy this compositional idea.

The foreground is the open section above a staircase on either side of the main altar (in the background).  The stairs lead to a burial place below the altar (see later image).  I saw this type of architectural arrangement in the strange (Mayan?) type design of the ancient Duomo in Castelvecchio, Italy, beside where I carved stone in a symposium during the summer of 2013.

"Watch out for the stairs, for there is a danger of falling."  I am not sure why I find these icons so adorable.

I found this room under the altar to be a bit freaky.  But then, each day while I paint, I have been listening to audiobooks of the vampire series by Anne Rice.  This room would be a great scene for a book and I wondered if vampires would feel protected, sleeping here by day in the house of the faithful.

Since this is the Cathedral, that must be the throne of the Bishop.  I liked the addition of a contemporary design of the chairs beautifully added to the splendor of times past.

I took this snapshot since it reminds me of my niece Alexis, who has been flashing the two fingers of peace since birth.

This image of the pink stone lions is actually around the entrance to the Basilica, very nearby the Cathedrale.  However, I had so many images in my last post, I was afraid to add more.

And finally another external view of the complex that includes the Basilica (the Cathedral is on my right, facing away from me here).  It is so easy to be transported through time with architecture such as this. 

If you are interested in learning more about the origins and history of the words to describe the architecture and uses of the words “basilica” and “cathedral,” these links would be a fun place to start:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cathedral

Thank you for reading.  I hope you enjoy these efforts of my musings and my images.

Yours in art,

Kelly Borsheim

http://BorsheimArts.com