Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Brancacci Chapel
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The church of Santa Maria del Carmine is famous for
The Life of St Peter
frescoes in the Brancacci Chapel,
commissioned by the Florentine merchant Felice
Brancacci around 1424. Masolino began the work
in 1425 but many of the scenes are by his pupil,
Masaccio, who died before completing the cycle.
Filippino Lippi finished the work 50 years later, in
1480. Masaccio's use of perspective in
The Tribute
Money
and the tragic realism of his figures in
The
Expulsion of Adam and Eve
placed him at the vanguard
of Renaissance painting. Many great artists, including
Michelangelo, later visited
the chapel to study his
pioneering work.
In every scene
, St Peter
is distinguished from the
crowds as the figure in
the orange cloak.
St Peter Heals the Sick
Masaccio's realistic portrayal
of cripples and beggars was
revolutionary in his time.
The grouping
of stylized
figures in Masaccio's frescoes
reflects his interest in the
sculpture of his contemporary
Donatello
(see p69)
.
Masaccio's simple style
allows us to focus on the
figures central to the frescoes
without distracting detail.
Expulsion of Adam and Eve
Masaccio's ability to express
emotion is well illustrated by
his harrowing portrait of
Adam and Eve being driven
out of the Garden of Eden,
their faces wracked by
misery, shame and the
burden of self-knowledge.
