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PART III
THE RENAISSANCE THROUGH THE ROCOCO
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
ART IN THIRTEENTH- AND FOURTEENTH–
CENTURY ITALY
Closer Look:
Giotto’s Arena Chapel
Google Earth Coordinates:
Siena Cathedral, west and south façade including Campanile, Italy
Palazzo della Signoria (Palazzo Vecchio), Florence, Italy
The Growth of the Mendicant Orders and the Visual Arts in Italy
Key Images
Interior of Upper Church, Basilica of San Francesco, Assisi, p. 439, 13.1
Anonymous, Saint Francis Preaching to the Birds, p. 440, 13.2
Altarpiece of Saint Clare, p. 440, 13.3
Arnoldfo di Cambio (?), Nave and choir of Santa Croce, Florence, p. 442, 13.4
Materials and Techniques: Fresco Painting and Conservation, p. 441
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Painting in Tuscany
Key Images
Cimabue, Madonna Enthroned, p. 449, 13.16
Giotto, Madonna Enthroned, p. 450, 13.17
Duccio, Christ Entering Jerusalem, from the back of the Maestà Altar., p. 457, 13.24
Simone Martini, Annunciation, p. 458, 13.25
Pietro Lorenzetti, Birth of the Virgin, p. 459, 13.26
Ambrogio Lorenzetti, The Allegory of Good Government, p. 460, 13.27
Northern Italy
Key Images
Tomb of Bernabò Visconti, Milan, p. 465, 13.33
Giovannino dei Grassi, Hours of Giangaleazzo Visconti, p. 466, 13.34
The mendicants mission to preach resulted in the construction of large urban
churches. These churches were basilica-plan churches, with a large nave and wooden
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Thirteenth- and fourteenth-century painters in Tuscany created images that
represented nature more than artists of the earlier medieval periods. This interest in
nature resulted in representations of light on three-dimensional forms and illusions of
space within paintings. These techniques were intended to involve the viewer to a
greater extent than before.
Key Terms/Places/Names
humanism
Franciscans
buon fresco
nave
piers
clerestory
ribbed groin vaults
crossing
Discussion Questions
1. Discuss the impact of the mendicant orders on church architecture of the thirteenth-
and fourteenth-centuries. In what ways did these orders influence the cities in which
they were located?
2. In what ways did the buildings of the Italian Cistercians contrast with French Gothic
cathedrals such as Reims?
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5. Contrast the Christ Entering Jerusalem of Giotto (13.19) and Duccio (13.24).
9. How is St. Clare represented in the Altarpiece of St. Clare (13.3)?
10. What does the presence of black
The Way of Salvation (13.31)?
Resources
Books
Bellosi, Luciano. Duccio: The Maesta. New York: Thames and Hudson, 1999.
DVDs
Francis and Clare of Assisi. (1998). Vision Video. 30 min.
Giotto: His Life and Art. (2005). Vision Video. 29 min.