Siena: The Rise of Painting, 1300-1350

Exquisite exhibition at the National Gallery of art from 14th century Siena.

I love this style of early art but was worried that the show might feel quite dry however it was quite the opposite. The display and storytelling made these works come to life.

Although the show was built around four painters Duccio, Simone Martini and the Lorenzetti brothers, others were brought in and there were some fabulous examples of sculpture. I loved one room which showed the pictures with examples of objects in them or that would have been used around them.

Best of all was the narrative of the show and the way it highlighted the humanity of the work which to modern eyes could look archaic. I loved some of the details such as a man playing bongos and a dancing angel. They also told stories of the artists and I was touched by Lando di Pieto who put prayers he had written inside a Crucifix he made.

I also liked how the show broadened out to look at how Sienese artists travelled and were used by the pope’s retinue in Avignon and the influence of their art in the next generation. It’s always good to have an excuse to include The Wilton Diptych in an exhibition. (I visited again a few weeks later and the work had moved up to the main display rooms.)

My only criticism would be that there was no mention of the great secular work by the Lorenzetti brothers “The Allegory of Good and Bad Government”. It would be hard to cover as it’s a fresco and can’t be moved but it would have made a good counterpoint to the religious work.

Closes 22 June 2025


Reviews

Times

Guardian

Telegraph

Evening Standard


 

 

 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Renaissance Nude

Image
Beautiful exhibition at the Royal Academy looking at the nude in Renaissance art. The show was gently themed but mainly let the pictures speak for themselves. It began by looking at the subjects, both religious and secular, which include nude figures then examined techniques and models used in these works, finishing by looking at more personal pictures. This is a period I’ve studied a lot so there were a lot of old friends and it was quite fun predicting what might appear. There were a few surprises too such as the rather surprising drawing of the Ecstatic Christ. I liked the fact the show included lots of different art forms not just paintings including sculpture, etchings, drawings and illuminated manuscripts. There were some fascinating hangs to draw comparisons particularly two sets of pictures by Giovanni Bellini and Hand Memling from almost exactly the same date. These were shown back to back in a display cabinet down the middle of one room. My favourite work was ...
Read more

Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year Exhibition 2019

Image
Delightful exhibition at Clarendon Fine Art showing pictures from the Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year TV series. I had loved the series which had set nine artists, both professional and amateur, to paint one of three celebrities. It then had a semi-final and final with them all looking at one sitter and in the final they also took on a commission. I loved the way you watched a picture build and how some were then made or spoiled by one stroke of paint.   Finding these pictures I knew so well in the flesh was therefore fascinating. None of them disappointed. My favourite artist from the final, Tom Mead, works looked just as good in real life if not better as you could see the detail. The show included his impressive self-portrait which he submitted to enter the competition, a wonderful fragmented picture of his reflection in a mirror giving a sense of movement. I loved that it included a large version of him and a miniature. His commission for the final of Jazzie B...
Read more

La Pelle: Luc Tuymans

Image
Fascinating exhibition at Palazzo Grassi o, a retrospective of the work of the painter Luc Tuymans. I loved these paintings which looked like out of focus photographs which gave an ethereal, wistful effect. My favourites were the ones which looked at the close detail of something such as showing a wax seal and another looking at the surface of brocade. They mirrored the way I often look at the surface and detail of paintings in in this case I ended up looking at the detail of a detail. A lot of the work was responding to 20th century German history and the current rise of right wing groups. This sometimes gave quite beautiful pictures a sinister edge such as “Walk” which looked like a slightly Lowry like scene of people walking in a park from above but turned out to be based on a photograph of Nazi dignitaries strolling around Berchtesgarden.   There are also some lovely portraits which turn out to be of Nazi leaders or a leader of the Ku Klux Klan. The leaflet for ...
Read more