Piero Della Francesca : An Internal Order of Light and Balance

An excellent online course from Paula Nutall examining the life and work of the 15th century artist Piero Della Francesca.

As ever Paula was clear and methodical and overran gloriously. In week one we looked at the work Piero did for his hometown Borgo Sansepolcro and the surrounding area as well as for his own house. I was fascinated to hear the National Gallery’s Nativity by him was painted for his own house and that a figure of Hercules was also found there. Paula also talked about his influences linking a lot to work and events he may have seen when he was in Florence.

In week two we looked in depth at the fresco cycle of the True Cross in Arezzo. Again I remember seeing it and it was wonderful to look at it in detail and study the stories and iconography.

Finally in week 3 we looked at his work for various courts in particular Urbino, although we touched on his work for the papal court and thought about what may have influenced him there. She also outlined work he did at other courts which is documented but is now lost. We looked in some depth at the work he did in Urbino for Federico Montefeltro including this wonderful altarpiece. Finally she discussed his three mathematical thesis and why these aren’t better know and how they may be influenced by his paintings.

All in all a supper three mornings with, in true Paula style, lots of links between the Italian and Northern artists.