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PROVENANCE: Sotheby's, London, July 30,
1969 , lot 34, sold to Mr. Holstein; Julius Weitzner, London, 1970;
BJU, 1970.
Both Francesco Granacci and Michelangelo trained in the workshop of
Domenico Ghirlandaio. A lifelong friend of Michelangelo, he briefly assisted
in the work on the Sistine Chapel ceiling. He painted in the High Renaissance
style dominated by Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, and Michelangelo.
In his Rest on the Flight into Egypt,
Granacci directs the viewer's eyes using the favorite compositional device
of the High Renaissance: the triangle. Considered the most stable and
harmonious way to arrange a group of figures, the triangle is also one
of the most important Christian symbols because it represents the Trinity.
Initially one tends to look at the charming face of Mary. The imaginary
line created by her gaze then directs the viewer's eye down her right
arm and leg to the bottom of the picture where her right foot rests.
From there the eye progresses up the heroically posed body of the infant
John the Baptist to his right arm which grasps the hand of the Christ
Child in a friendly greeting. The eye then moves to Christ's face and
then to Mary's left hand that holds Him on her lap. The contrasting silhouette
of the garment on her left arm against the sky forms a bold line that
leads the viewer back to her face again. Such lines smoothly guide the
viewer's attention from one part of the painting to another.
Beyond its composition, the Rest on the Flight into Egypt demonstrates
several other primary characteristics of High Renaissance art. First, Renaissance
Italian artists concentrated on glorifying the order and harmony of the
universe since God's creation is rational and beautiful. Granacci's choice
of colors and composition are essays on this order and harmony. Secondly,
the figures are monumental and appear sculpted-solid forms that command
a bold presence within a landscape. The heroic-looking embrace of John
the Baptist and the Christ Child is reminiscent of classical sculpture
that Renaissance artists sought to emulate. Finally, the muscular children
and the idealized face of the Virgin communicate a sense of man as the
supreme creation in all of nature.
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