|
Duccio.
At the origins of Sienese painting
The
Sienese exhibition, sponsored by the city's most important
institutions - the local authority, the university, the
Superintendency - is the fruit of years of study and preparation.
The event has been planned as the crowning moment following the
delicate restoration of the circular glass window in apse of the
Duomo and of studies to ascertain to what degree Duccio di
Buonisegna was responsible for the masterpiece. In addition to
this research and work, there was a very important find: beneath
the floor of the Duomo, restorers discovered a large, completely
frescoed area. The pictorial cycle represents the history of
salvation, biblical scenes taken from Genesis and the stories of
Isaac and Mary, and Jesus' childhood. The room, whose purpose is
unclear, is a rectangular hypostyle divided by huge polygonal
columns. It is unclear if the room was perhaps an oratory or an
underground crypt for confessions, similar to that in the Basilica
of Saint Peter. The frescoes are a sensationally important find
for the artistic world. Dating back to 1270 (after the arrival in
Siena of Nicoḷ Pisano, who designed the pulpit of the Duomo in
1265), the paintings offer numerous examples of Sienese painting
before Duccio became successful. One can clearly see the hand of
Guido da Siena, Dietisalvi di Speme and of the young Duccio
himself. Everything underlines the advanced expressive maturity of
the Sienese, who clearly had no need to draw inspiration from
Cimabue and the Florentines to fuel their artistic growth. The
crypt is at the start of the exhibition itinerary and constitutes
a perfect preamble. Eight other sections follow. The first is
dedicated to Duccio's predecessors and contemporaries; the second,
to the relationship between Cimabue, Duccio and Giotto; the third,
to Buoninsegna's workshop. The next three sections probe the work
of the painter's closest disciples. The exhibition itinerary ends
with two sections focusing on the early work of the great painters
of the fourteenth century and Sienese gothic art.
|
Duccio.
Alle origini della pittura senese
Siena,
Santa Maria della Scala and Museo dell'Opera
until 11 January 2004
opening times: every day (including Mondays, weekends and public
holidays) 9 am - 7.30 pm; Friday and Saturday: 9 am - 10 pm
Ticket price: 7 euros concessions: 5.50 euros
telephone: 0577-280551 fax 0577-281041
Links
The
official website
|
