Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
It combines meticulous detail with Italian spaciousness. The floor tiles and building
bricks recede into the distance. We're sucked right in, accelerating through the alleyway,
under the arch, and off into space. The Holy Spirit spans the entire distance, connecting
heavenly background with earthly foreground. Crivelli creates an Escheresque labyrinth
of rooms and walkways that we want to walk through, around, and into—or is that just a
male thing?
Renaissance Italians were interested in—even obsessed with—portraying 3-D space.
Perhaps they focused their spiritual passion away from heaven and toward the physical
world. With such restless energy, they needed lots of elbow room. Space, the final frontier.
• Walk straight ahead into Room 60, then turn right into Room 51, where we first entered.
Tucked in an adjoining room labeled
The Leonardo Cartoon
is...
Leonardo—
Virgin and Child with St. Anne and St. John the Baptist
(c.
1499-1500)
At first glance, this chalk cartoon (a full-size preparatory drawing for a painting) looks
like a simple snapshot of two loving moms and two playful kids. The two children
