The Tretyakov Gallery hosted an exhibition entitled Masterpieces of the Vatican Pinakothek. The time of its passage is from 02/19/2016 to 02/19/2017. What is a pinakothek, what is its significance for the inhabitants of Russia, can be found in the article.

Meaning of the word

Pinakothek is a term that comes from the fusion of two Greek words. The first part of the term means "board", that is, "picture", and the second - "store". It is easy to guess what a pinakothek is. IN Ancient Greece this was the name of the room in which the picturesque images were kept. Gradually, the meaning of the term changed somewhat.

What is the Pinakothek in the past and present

There was a building in the left wing of which they kept paintings brought to the goddess Athena as a gift. They were housed in several six-column rooms. The collection consisted of various painted works. It was made available for viewing by their citizens of Athens. The first catalog, which began the systematization of the repository, was created by Polemon of Ilion in the third - second century BC. e. There were Pinakotheks at Heraion (Temple of Hera).

citizens ancient rome used the term to refer to the hall in which the works of art were kept.

During the Renaissance, the term was used to refer to collections of paintings that were open to the public.

What is the Pinakothek today? The term refers to art galleries. A good example is one of the most famous Pinakotheks in the world.

Pinacoteca Vatican

The collection of paintings of the Vatican appeared a couple of hundred years ago. Its founder is considered to be Pope Pius VI. A few decades later, in 1797, most of the paintings were sent to Paris. The order was given by Napoleon. By 1815 the collection had returned to the Vatican. The decision to return the valuables was made at the Congress of Vienna, held after the Napoleonic Wars.

Paintings did not have a permanent location. They were transferred from one hall to another until they were placed in a wing of the Belvedere Palace. The public was able to see the Pinakothek only in 1908.

Twenty-four years later, a special building was erected for the collection. Pope Pius Eleventh became the customer for the construction, and L. Beltrami was the architect.

The collection consists of approximately 460 paintings, which are housed in eighteen rooms in chronological order. It contains works on religious themes. Mostly it is the work of Italian masters.

Hall examples:

• The first room shows the works of the Medieval Schools by such masters as Nicolò Giovanni.
• The eighth room contains works by Raphael Santi, including tapestries made according to his sketches.
• The tenth hall is represented by the school of Raphael and Venetian painting.
• The twelfth room consists of baroque paintings: works by Nicolas Poussin, Caravaggio, Guido Reni.
• The eighteenth room contains icons and mosaics from the fifteenth to sixteenth centuries.

You can visit the Pinakothek by buying a single ticket to enter Sistine Chapel and The cost was sixteen euros in 2016.

Since November 2016, the Vatican Pinakothek has opened in the Tretyakov Gallery. What is presented in the brought collection and what is its significance for residents and guests of Moscow?

Masterpieces of the Vatican Pinakothek in the Tretyakov Gallery

The exhibition (Vatican Pinakothek) consists of forty paintings. These are the works of Giovanni Bellini, Caravaggio, Raphael and other masters of the twelfth to eighteenth centuries. It will continue until February 19, 2017.

Tickets for the Vatican Pinakothek will cost five hundred rubles per person. The session of visiting the exhibition is thirty minutes. You can buy tickets for any time on the personal website of the Tretyakov Gallery.

According to the curator of the exhibition, Arkady Ippolitov, the exhibition is a kind of explanation of the idea of ​​"Moscow - the third Rome." The Pinakothek has concentrated the state for seven centuries. The institution of the papacy, according to him, is the link between European civilization and the ancient world.

The exhibition begins with the earliest icon of Rome, "Christ Blessing", which dates back to the twelfth century. It was written under the influence of Byzantium. The icon keeps memories of a single church, showing a single root from which the art of Italy and Russia developed.

Gentile da Fabriano. "Scenes from the life of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker: St. Nicholas pacifies the storm and saves the ship", ca. 1425

photo © Vatican Museums / Photo © Vatican Museums

Vatican Museums

not only for the first time they present the treasures of their collection in Russia, but also for the first time they take them abroad in such quantity. Forty-two paintings from the collection of the Pinakothek is almost one tenth of the entire collection, numbering about five hundred canvases.

Describing a work of art is a thankless task, doomed to failure in advance, because it is impossible to verbalize that subtle connection that is established between you when you find yourself alone. And it doesn't matter how many people are around, because at that moment it only talks to you.

The language of the masterpieces of the Vatican Pinakothek is music. Consciousness helpfully suggests associations: medieval polyphony, Renaissance madrigal, baroque concerto grosso. In fact, these pictures sound different. Their music is the music of silence: lines, colors, subtle gestures and glances.

You do not need to be an art critic to understand - or rather, feel - the work of a genius. The image, for all its harmony, remains only an imprint, if something more is not invested in it. Each of these paintings has a soul, all these canvases are alive.

"Christ Blessing", the rarest work of the Roman school of the XII century. Painfully familiar features of Byzantine icons, which have become a model for ancient Russian icon painters, are guessed in it. Rome Aeterna. Rome first, second, third... Eternal. "Christ Blessing" opens an exhibition in Tretyakov Gallery, you meet his eyes immediately, barely crossing the threshold of the hall. He is here all alone - silent, calm and self-sufficient. And behind him is a whole world, enclosed in the space of a small room, in which St. Francis of Assisi (Margaritone d'Arezzo, XIII century), calming the storm Nicholas the Wonderworker (Gentile da Fabriano, XV century), angels playing lutes ceremoniously pass in front of you (Melozzo da Forli, XV century).

Pietro Vannucci, nicknamed Perugino. "Saint Placis", 1495-1498 "Saint Justina", 1495-1498

Here is the predella "The Miracles of St. Vincenzo Ferrer" - the work of Ercole de Roberti, an artist of the Ferrara school, one of the most significant in Renaissance Italy. “The limits were called telling a certain story, the paintings that were located at the bottom of the altar,- explains the curator of the exhibition Arkady Ippolitov. - Although the painting belongs to the brush of the Ferrara artist, numerous allusions to Rome are encrypted in it, which, among other things, are expressed in the processing of the postures of ancient statues in the central figures. It is also remarkable in that it reads like a kind of defile of the most extravagant models of the late 15th century - along with the Duchy of Burgundy, Ferrara was a trendsetter of that time..

In the second room - canvases High Renaissance(XVI century) and the Baroque era (XVII century). Their music is different: passionate, assertive, challenging. Despite the religious plots, these paintings sometimes seem to be theomachist - in any case, their creators speak with Him on an equal footing.

Here is the "Vision of Saint Helena" by the Venetian Paolo Veronese. A triumph of colors and magnificent clothes and a rich interior. The heroine of the picture is the mother of Emperor Constantine, who, according to Theophanes' Chronography, was ordered in a dream to go to Jerusalem "to find the life-giving cross of the Lord." Together with her, the viewer finds himself here on the shaky verge of dream and reality, divine and earthly, spiritual and material.

And next to it are two predellas by Raphael: "Faith" and "Mercy" of 1507. Quite small, they look like book spreads. On each of them - a woman surrounded by two angels. Instantly recognizable Raphael characters with soft outlines of faces and refined grace of poses. Despite their modest size, these paintings create a special atmosphere around them, a space of some kind of intimate dialogue with everyone who enters it.

In the 17th century, papal Rome reached its highest power and wealth, it was during this era that the picturesque collection of the Vatican was significantly replenished with the works of outstanding contemporaries, therefore the artistic history of this century is most fully represented in the papal collection. (By the way, the corresponding hall of the Pinakothek was almost bare, as the deputy director of the Vatican Museums Barbara Yatta said - most of the paintings permanent exhibition moved to Moscow for three months.)

"The Entombment" by Caravaggio, one of his main masterpieces, which influenced the entire subsequent history of painting, from Rubens to Cezanne. He painted this picture around 1603-1604 for the church of Santa Maria in Valicella in Rome, in the status of the most famous and scandalous Italian artist of his time, whose work invariably caused heated debate. Each element of the huge, three by two meters, picture is thought out to the smallest detail, its incredibly strong dramatic effect is largely due to the fact that the body of Christ seems to break through the canvas. He is right in front of you, it is enough to stretch out your hand to feel his flesh with muscles that are still strong, but already devoid of life.

A separate, third, room is reserved for a series of paintings by the Bolognese artist XVIII century Donato Creti "Astronomical Observations". In slightly mannered figures, against the background of night landscapes, one can feel both the playfulness of Rococo and the spirit of the new time, the Enlightenment. The power of the Pope is gradually weakening, very soon the history of the Papal States, which occupied most of the Apennine Peninsula, will end. The universe will become an efficient cause, not end result divine intention. A person who has taken history into his own hands will begin to search for the essence of things on earth with redoubled energy, but everyone will also raise his eyes to the sky, faced with insoluble questions and contradictions.

To the archive. Exhibition from the Vatican Pinakothek in Moscow.
Part 2 of 4: from Ercole de Roberti to Veronese. Caravaggio. Poussin.

All works [*] exhibition "Roma Aeterna. Masterpieces of the Vatican Pinakothek. Bellini, Raphael, Caravaggio. Continuation

[*] 35 or 42 pieces - depending on how you count.

The exhibition shows works for 6 centuries - from the 12th to the 18th centuries.

Photography at the exhibition was strictly prohibited.

Ercole de Roberti (circa 1450, Ferrara - 1496, Ferrara). Miracles of St. Vincenzo Ferrer: Healing of a woman in labor - Resurrection of a rich Jew - Healing of a lame man - Rescue of a child from a burning house - Resurrection of a child killed by an insane mother. 1473. Predella. Wood, tempera. 30 x 215 cm.

“In the 15th century, Ferrara flourished under the Dukes of Este, turning into an influential Cultural Center Renaissance Italy. Ercole de Roberti is one of the most original artists of the Ferrara school. His predella is considered the most sophisticated predella of the Renaissance. It is dedicated to the deeds of the Spanish saint Vincenzo Ferrer and is full of the mysterious and alluring spirit of Ferrara.

3.


Ercole de Roberti. Predella polyptych Griffoni. Fragment.

"Acquisition. Before dismantling in the 18th century in the church of San Petronio, Bologna; from 1839 - in the Vatican Pinacoteca Inv. 40286.

This predella, dedicated to the deeds of St. Vincenzo Ferrer, was part of the altarpiece created for the Floriano Griffoni chapel in the main temple of Bologna, the Cathedral of San Petronio. The altar, known as the Griffoni polyptych, dismantled in the 18th century, remains the clearest evidence of the joint work of Ercole de Roberti and his teacher Francesco del Cossa and shows how the novice artist managed not only to assert his independence, but, according to Vasari, even surpass the teacher . The general appearance of the altar was reconstructed by Roberto Longhi (1934), later the fidelity of its reconstruction was confirmed by an accidentally found drawing of the 18th century, made by Stefano Orlandi before the polyptych was dismantled.

4.

One of the possible reconstructions showing the arrangement of the various parts of the Griffoni polyptych. About what reconstruction in question in the catalog - don't know / Polittico Griffoni: one of the suggested reconstructions indicating the relative position of the different panels. Digital technology applied to the re-unification of a scattered altarpiece .

In the center of the polyptych was placed the main image of St. Vincenzo Ferrer [this image of Vincenzo Ferrer by Francesco del Cossa can be found on the London National Gallery website: Saint Vincent Ferrer, probably about 1473-1475, Francesco del Cossa - approx. gorbutovich], a Spanish Dominican friar, canonized in 1455. On either side of it - large paintings: two standing saints, and in the upper register - two half-length images of saints and medallions with scenes of the Crucifixion (in the center) and the Annunciation (on the sides). Work on the altarpiece must have been completed shortly after the woodcarver Agostino de Marchi was paid to make the frames, i.e. after July 19, 1473. The work entered the Vatican collection under the name of Benozzo Gozzoli, and the predella was recently recognized as the work of Ercole de Roberti, although Vasari pointed to its authorship.

5.

Fragment. On the Internet you can find pictures of the highest quality. Maybe somewhere on personal pages in social networks there is something, but I could not find / Predella (detail). Panels from the Griffoni Polyptych by Ercole de" Roberti. Polyptych: 1472-1473. Tempera on panel, height of detail 28 cm. Pinacoteca, Vatican. Wga.hu.

Cossa wrote the central images, but he completely entrusted the predella to Ercole. As was customary in workshops during the Quattrocento era, Cossa only outlined overall composition, otherwise relying entirely on Ercole. The latter, apparently, began to paint the predella from left to right, following the outlines of the teacher, as he advanced, working out the figures in more detail. Ercole's manner is close to that of his teacher, and some scenes even seem to be direct quotes from Cossa's frescoes in the Palazzo Schifanoia in Ferrara: in particular, the child eating cookies in the scene "The Resurrection of a Rich Jew" can be found in.

6.

Ercole de' Roberti, I miracoli di San Vincenzo Ferrer (particolare). Predella della Pala Griffoni, 1473. Musei Vaticani, Città del Vaticano. via

In his use of classical architecture, Ercole also follows the intent of his teacher rather than his penchant for depicting ruins.

Ercole's style comes out in a dramatic scene with a screaming woman and workers trying to put out the fire. This episode is borrowed from the Palazzo Schifanoia. In one of the scenes of the predella, Ercole unfolds a complex narration against a perspectively correctly constructed, albeit fantastic, background with architectural views and ruins. There are no clear boundaries between different episodes in the predella, and the whole composition is more like a narrative painting characteristic of a cassone (wedding chest) or spalliera (decorative wall panel) than a predella.

7.


This is not Ercole de Roberti, this is a 1929 copy. Fragment of a copy of the Griffoni polyptych predella, kept in the London national gallery. In London, the original predella passes under the name of Francesco del Cossa rather than Ercole de Roberti / Scenes from the Life of Saint Vincent Ferrer. Date made 1929. After Francesco del Cossa (Carrine Palmieri and Rosa Falcone). Acquisition credit: Presented by Pope Pius XI, 1930. 30.5 x 215 cm. The National Gallery, London. This painting is a copy of the predella panel of an altarpiece originally in the Griffoni chapel of the church of S. Petronio, Bologna. The 15th-century central panel by Francesco del Cossa depicts "Saint Vincent Ferrer", who became a Dominican friar in 1367 and was famous as a preacher and missionary. The side panels, now in the Brera, Milan, show Saint Peter and Saint John the Baptist. The design is unified through the architecture and the rocky landscape. The original predella panel (Rome, Vatican Museums) is also attributed to Ercole de" Roberti.

The sophisticated iconography, not yet fully deciphered, suggests that the artist must have followed the advice of learned humanists, such as Giovanni Garzoni of Bologna, the author of the life of St. Vincenzo Ferrer, whose cult spread throughout northern Italy and was especially strong in Bologna. In the first scene on the left, a woman begs Saint Vincenzo to ease her labor pains.

8.

Then comes The Resurrection of the Rich Jew.

9.


Fragment of a copy of the Griffoni polyptych predella, kept in the London National Gallery. 1929 / The National Gallery, London.

This scene is followed by an episode with a seated man, whose bleeding leg Saint Vincenzo heals from heaven. After this, there is a picture of a fire extinguished in time thanks to the intervention of the saint.

The last scenes tell the story of a mother who, in a fit of madness, killed her only son. Her husband brings the boy's remains to the tomb of Saint Vincenzo, where the child miraculously comes back to life.

The scenes are filled with characters dressed in the latest fashions, and since Saint Vincenzo was famous for converting and baptizing a large number of people from different countries, they also feature exotically dressed people. The view of the crowd is reminiscent of Paolo Uccello and Piero della Francesca.

11.


via

Predella Ercole is one of the most sophisticated in the art of the Renaissance. The artist shows his erudition using references to ancient art. Among them are the bronze “Boy pulling out a splinter” (Capitoline Museums, Rome), the prototype of a seated man with a wounded leg, and the Dioscuri from the Quirinale in Rome, who are reminiscent of men fighting fire in a fire scene. Ercole is more expressive than his teacher.

He feels himself in his native element on a miniature scale, but his love for detail does not detract from the overall monumentality of the composition. The artist took Andrea Mantegna's experience creatively, using his sharp angles, as can be seen in the image of the horse at the bottom edge of the frame. Predella written bright colors and with that fine jewelry that the Ferrarese so valued in Netherlandish painting and in Cosme Tura. While critics have consistently noted the restless dramatic atmosphere of Ercole's work, the real hallmark of his style is the golden-brown light that floods his paintings and gives them that metaphysical tension that anticipates the "piazzi" of Giorgio de Chirico, another "irrational" artist who loved the melancholic Ferrara so much. "

Vatican Museums catalog entry:
Autore: Ercole de "Roberti (Ferrara 1450 ca. - 1496) - già attr. a Benozzo Gozzoli (Firenze 1420 - Pistoia 1497) e a Francesco del Cossa
Description/Titolo: Predella: Miracoli di San Vincenzo Ferrer: Il Santo guarisce una storpia; Resuscita una ricca ebrea; Salva un bimbo in una casa incendiata; Resuscita un bimbo ucciso dalla madre impazzita; Guarisce un ferito ad una gamba (già "Miracoli di San Giacinto" di B. Gozzoli)
Datazione: 1473
Materia: tempera su tavola
Misure: cm 30 x 215
Periodo Acquisition: 1908
Tipo Acquisition: Ingresso nella Pinacoteca di Pio X
Provenienza: dalla pala d "altare della Cappella Griffoni eseguita da Francesco del Cossa per la Chiesa di San Petronio a Bologna, smembrata nel sec. XVI; dal 1732 al 1782 ca. in casa Aldovrandi; venduta nel 1839 da Feliciano Brizzi al Governo Pontificio ed esposta nella Pinacoteca di Gregorio XVI (MORONI G., 1847); nel 1857 ca., nella Pinacoteca di Pio IX
Collocazione: Edificio della Pinacoteca
Pinacoteca Vaticana
Sala V

12.

Melozzo degli Ambrosi, detto Melozzo da Forlì, (Forlì 1438 - 1494) Un angelo che suona il liuto, 1480 ca. Frammento di affresco staccato, cm 93.5 x 117 Inv. 40269.14.10. Musei Vaticani. . Wikipedia image: 4296 x 5323

Melozzo degli Ambrosi, nicknamed Melozzo da Forli (1438, Forli - 1494, Forli). 1480. Musical angels - three fragments of frescoes, transferred to cadorite.

Melozzo da Forli. Angel playing the lute. 1480. 117.5 x 93.5 cm.

“From the beginning of the XIV century, the time of the Avignon captivity of the popes, Rome fell into decay, which lasted until the middle of the XV century. The decline of Rome was also reflected in its artistic life: the weakness of the Roman school of painting forced the popes to turn to artists from other cities.

Melozzo da Forli, native small town Forlì in the province of Emilia-Romagna, was invited to Rome by Pope Sixtus IV. He created many frescoes in Roman churches, so that Melozzo can be considered the founder of the Roman school, which flourished in the 16th-17th centuries. Three musical angels presented at the exhibition are fragments of his painting of the dome of the Church of Santi Apostoli, a huge multi-figured composition "Ascension of Christ."

13.

Melozzo da Forlì. Angeli, 1475-1477. via

Melozzo degli Ambrosi, nicknamed Melozzo da Forli. Angel playing the lute. 1480. 108.5 x 77.5 cm.

“The fresco “Ascension of Christ” was perceived by contemporaries as a triumph of papal power that revived Rome. The divine orchestra of angels symbolized the unearthly beauty of paradise, and the abstract concept of “music of heaven” is associated with the philosophical constructions of the model of the world, which the Pythagoreans and Platonists spoke about. Melozzo, as a Renaissance artist, combines ancient and Christian traditions in his work. His angels, glorifying the Lord according to the words of the Bible: “Let them praise His name with faces, on a tympanum and harp, let them sing to Him, for the Lord favors His people, glorifies the humble with salvation,” are ideal, as antique statues, and at the same time vital - they look like young pages at the courts of the Renaissance rulers.

14.

via. Original (4201 x 5276)

Melozzo degli Ambrosi, nicknamed Melozzo da Forli. Angel playing the viol. 1480.

“Not so many works by Melozzo have come down to us, most of his frescoes were destroyed during the restructuring, but from what remains, one can judge the scale of his talent. “The Ascension of Christ” is exceptional, the fresco stands apart from all contemporary paintings. The plot representing the triumph of the Savior ascending the heavenly throne surrounded by heavenly forces, a favorite in Byzantine art, was borrowed by Western Europe, blossomed magnificently during the Romanesque, continued in the Gothic, but was no longer successful in the Quattrocento. Melozzo, turning to medieval samples, breathed into them new life and re-introduced the theme of the Ascension to the list of the most topical themes of fine art, thereby anticipating Michelangelo, Raphael, Correggio, and the murals of the domes of baroque churches.

15.


Pietro Vannucci, detto il Perugino, (Città della Pieve 1450 ca. - Fontignano 1523) S. Flavia; S. Placido, 1496 - 99 Tempera grassa su tavola Invv. 40319, 40320, 40321 -2.1. Musei Vaticani.

Pietro Vannucci, nicknamed Perugino (1448, Citta della Pieve - 1523, Fontignano). Saint Placis. 1495-1498. Predella. Tree, oil tempera. 35.5 x 30 cm.

“A native of Umbria, Pietro Perugino, at the turn of the 15th and 16th centuries, became one of the most influential artists in Italy, and, having large workshops in Florence and Perugia, full of students, he, as prolific as he was talented, filled the churches of Tuscany and Umbria with many of his tender Madonnas and pious saints. The painting is a fine example of his mature style.

Two saints of Placida are known: a martyr who was killed together with his sister Flavia during the reign of Emperor Diocletian in the 4th century, and a disciple of Saint Benedict who lived in the 6th century. Perugino, combining both legends, presented the saint in a cassock, but with a palm branch, symbolizing martyrdom, an attribute of brother Flavia.

16.


Pietro Vannucci, detto il Perugino, (Citta della Pieve 1450 ca. - Fontignano 1523). S. Flavia; S. Placido, 1496-99. Tempera grassa su tavola Invv. 40319, 40320, 40321 -2.1. Musei Vaticani.

Pietro Vannucci, nicknamed Perugino. Saint Justina. 1495-1498. Predella. Wood, oil tempera. 33.5 x 26 cm.

“This painting, like Saint Placis, was part of the large altar of the Ascension of Christ, created for the monastery of San Pietro in Perugia between 1495 and 1500. Due to confusion with Saint Plakida, until recently it was believed that Saint Flavia is depicted, but now it has been proven that this is Saint Justina, the patroness of the Benedictine community of the monastery of San Pietro - the crown on the head of her, a princess by birth, is a traditional attribute.

17.

"Saint Justina" is of the same high quality as "Saint Placis", but for the history of art, these two paintings are also important because they were part of the Ascension of Christ altar, which was created just at the time when in workshop Perugino appeared very young Raphael.

18.


Raffaello Sanzio, (Urbino 1483 - Roma 1520). Speranza - Carità - Fede, Predella Baglioni, 1507. Tempera grassa su tavola, cm 18 x 44 ciascun pannello Invv. 40330, 40331, 40332 - Fede. Musei Vaticani.

Raphael Santi (1483, Urbino - 1520, Rome). Faith and Mercy. 1507. Predella. Wood (poplar), oil. Both are 18 x 44 cm.

Raphael. Faith

“Perhaps there is no more influential artist in the history of art than Raphael. For three and a half centuries his name has been synonymous with absolute perfection in art.

The first critical reviews were heard in mid-nineteenth century, then the number of its critics expanded, the manifestos of the new art overthrew its authority, but denial is a kind of recognition. It is no coincidence that the works of Raphael are placed in the center of the hall dedicated to the High Renaissance and Baroque.

19.

Version of the reconstruction of the Baglioni altarpiece / Raphaël, La Déposition, 1507 / Pala Baglioni. via, via

These are two of the three small grisailles that made up the predella of the altarpiece for the church of San Francesco al Prato in Perugia, known as the Baglioni altarpiece, in the center of which was the "Laying in the Coffin", now kept in the Galleria Borghese.

20.


Raffaello Sanzio. Fede, Predella Baglioni, 1507. Musei Vaticani.

"Faith", the side part of the predella, appears as a female figure with a chalice in her hand, the putti in the side niches hold tablets with the monograms of the name of Jesus.

21.


Raffaello Sanzio, (Urbino 1483 - Roma 1520). Carità, Predella Baglioni, 1507. Tempera grassa su tavola, cm 18 x 44. ciascun pannello Invv. 40330, 40331, 40332 Speranza. Musei Vaticani.

Raphael. Mercy

“The altar, of which “Faith” and “Mercy” were part, was commissioned by Atalanta Baglioni for the funeral chapel in which the body of her young son, who was brutally murdered in the internecine strife of two Perugian families, rested. Raphael received an order to create an altarpiece in the middle of 1506. This was the first major independent work, since before that he had not received orders for altars. The altar “Entombment” was much praised, but the novelty of the small predella was also noted.

22.


Raffaello Sanzio. Carita, Predella Baglioni, 1507. Musei Vaticani.

In the 15th century, predella told stories, which was the accepted norm, Raphael replaced the story with allegories. "Mercy", represented as a mother embracing babies, was in the center, framed by "Faith" and "Hope". Putto on the right is holding a cauldron with fire on his shoulders - an ancient one associated with Olympic Games a symbol of peace, and the left, scattering money, calls for generosity.

23.

Antonio da Correggio (1490-1534). Christ in Glory (Part of a Triptych). Circa 1526-1530. 105 × 98 cm. Pinacoteca Vaticana. via. Framed at the show

Antonio Allegri, nicknamed Correggio (1489, Correggio - 1534, Correggio). Christ in glory. Between 1525 and 1530. Pinnacle - altar top. Canvas, oil. 105 x 98 cm.

“The fame of Antonio Correggio during his lifetime was limited to Parma, where his main works were concentrated, but after his death he became one of the most revered Italian painters. This painting, valued in the 18th and the first half of the 19th century, was declared a copy in the 20th century and put into storage.

24.

Trittico della Misericordia

Only in 2011 it was restored, and at the same time it was established that the canvas of the 16th century, and on the figure and face of Christ, numerous author's corrections are visible, which do not exist in copies. The authorship of Correggio was recognized as undoubted, and the painting took pride of place in the exposition of Pi-nakoteka. It is interesting to compare “Christ in Glory” with the icon that opens the exhibition - the image of Correggio continues the development of the ancient iconographic type coming from Byzantium.”

25.

Paolo Caliari, detto il Veronese, (Verona 1528 - Venezia 1588) Visione di S. Elena, 1580 ca. Olio su tela, cm 166 x 134 Inv. 40532.

Paolo Cagliari, nicknamed Paolo Veronese (1528-1588). Vision of Saint Helena. Around 1575-1580. Canvas, oil.

“The painting by Paolo Veronese is luxurious in Venetian style. Depicted is Saint Helena, mother of Constantine, the first Christian Roman emperor. According to legend, an angel appeared to Elena, prompting her to go to Jerusalem in search of the cross of Jesus. Traditionally, the saint was depicted leading the workers digging out the cross, or holding the found cross in her hands. Veronese, on the other hand, depicted Elena sleeping, and an angel holding a cross, called to show the way to the Holy Land, was shown to her in a vision. The age of the depicted contradicts the canonical text of the biographies: Saint Helen, when she went to Jerusalem, was many years old, and the heroine Veronese is young. A free interpretation of the legend gave rise to the assumption that the elegant Venetian in the picture, whose image is almost a portrait, is the wife of Veronese, who was also called Elena.

Michelangelo Merisi, nicknamed Caravaggio (1571-1610). Position in the coffin. Around 1603-1604. Canvas, oil. 300 x 203 cm.

The main star of the exposition is the painting “The Entombment” by Caravaggio. In 2011, the work was already in Moscow at the exhibition "" in the State Museum fine arts them. A.S. Pushkin. In the context of the exhibition at the Tretyakov Gallery, for some reason, this is not very much remembered.

Description of the painting from the article for the exhibition at the Pushkin Museum:"His highest creative maturity Caravaggio reaches 1606, when he painted several monumental paintings for the most famous Roman churches, including St. Peter's Cathedral. One of the most famous works of this time is the work “The Entombment” (1606, Vatican Museums, Pinakothek), which strikes with truthfulness in the transfer of feelings and powerful dramatic intensity. As is clear from the documents, in order to understand the picture, it is extremely important to remember the active role of the Oratorian order, to which the cathedral belonged; they established strict rules regarding the decoration of chapels and the iconography of plots. Light pulls the characters out of obscure darkness, reveals their features and feelings: the aged mother of Christ, the converted sinner Mary Magdalene, Mary Cleopova, the "beloved disciple" John and Nicodemus. A group of figures forming a sort of sculptural composition, and the viewer turns out to be a participant in the scene thanks to the angle of view (from below, from the stone) and the look of Nicodemus, in the image of which the researchers see a portrait of the customer, Pietro Vittriche. The distribution of light in the picture is strictly thought out, thanks to which Caravaggio manages to direct the viewer's eye. The picture combines elements and characters from two plots - "The Entombment" (at which, according to the Gospels, Joseph of Arimathea, Magdalene and Mary of Cleopova were present) and "Lamentation" (in which the Mother of God and St. John the Evangelist are usually depicted). Such a combination is dictated by the iconographic program of the church, which corresponded to the plan of Filippo Neri himself, the founder of the Oratorian order. Caravaggio adds an element that carries a great emotional load in the composition - a colossal stone slab on which the heroes stand. This is a stone that closes the entrance to the burial cave, and, at the same time, a stone of anointing, on which the body of the Savior was laid for anointing with incense and swaddling clothes, where the tears of the Mother and drops of the blood of the Son fell. The plate directly refers to Christ as the cornerstone that unites the Old and New Testaments, the stone on which the Church is founded, understood as the "body of Christ" and symbolically represented here by the body of the Savior.

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Caravaggio. The position in the coffin, fragment. Around 1603-1604. Pinacoteca Vatican

Description of the painting in the booklet of the State Tretyakov Gallery:“The main masterpiece at the exhibition is Caravaggio's Entombment. This picture opens a new century. Unusual iconography is associated with calls for the purification of the Catholic Church and a return to the simplicity of ancient Christianity, which came from many figures of the Counter-Reformation, but the work, as often happens, turned out to be much more significant than any ideological calculations. It was perceived in the same way as the works of the avant-garde were perceived at the beginning of the 20th century. "The Entombment" with its open tragedy and the power of simplicity rebelled against institutionalized good taste. When the painting was opened, many were outraged, but many, including artists and collectors, among whom were aristocrats and cardinals, welcomed the new art.

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Nicolas Poussin, (Les Andelys 1594 - Roma 1665) Martirio di S. Erasmo, 1628 - 1629. Olio su tela, cm 320 x 186 Inv. 40394. Musei Vaticani.

Nicolas Poussin (1594-1665). Martyrdom of Saint Erasmus. 1628-1629.

“Poussin received an order for the altarpiece “The Martyrdom of St. Erasmus” in 1628, and this was his first Roman commission for the execution of a large work for the church. The painting was intended for a chapel in St. Peter's Basilica, which had just been opened after the completion of construction, and the order was very prestigious. The picture depicts the martyrdom of Erasmus, a native of Antioch, who became bishop in the city of Formia in Latium near Rome, who was executed by cutting open his stomach and pulling out the insides with the help of a gate. A priest in a white toga points to Hercules, whom Erasmus refused to worship. Terrible naturalism is somewhat smoothed out by the classicist Poussin, but the picture still makes an almost shocking impression.

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Nicholas Poussin. Martirio di S. Erasmo, 1628-1629. Musei Vaticani.

Poussin during his lifetime was considered an antagonist of Caravaggio, but The Martyrdom of St. Erasmus, exhibited in the same room as The Entombment, does not enter into an argument with him, but into a complex internal dialogue.

Sources:

Booklet-brochure “Roma Aeterna. Masterpieces of the Vatican Pinakothek. Bellini, Raphael, Caravaggio. 25 November 2016 - 19 February 2017
Catalogue: Roma Aeterna. Masterpieces of the Vatican Pinakothek. Bellini, Raphael, Caravaggio / State. Tretyakov Gallery. - M., 2016. - 240 p. : ill. ISBN 978-5-89580-152-9
And so on.
Article on the site Pushkin Museum about the exhibition "Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (1571-1610) from the collections of Italy and the Vatican", 11/26/2011 - 02/19/2012

Additionally:

All works of the exhibition:

1): from the icon of the XII century "Christ Blessing" to "Lamentation of Christ" by Giovanni Bellini. Hall 1.
2): from Ercole de Roberti to Veronese. Caravaggio. Poussin. Halls 1 and 2.
3): XVIII century, Astronomical observations, Donato Creti. Hall 3.
4): XVII and XVIII centuries - the remaining paintings. Hall 2.

Works by Raphael, Caravaggio, Bellini and other titans of world art were brought to Moscow from the Vatican Pinakothek.

Exhibition “Roma Aeterna. Masterpieces of the Vatican Pinakothek, opened in - iconic for modern history museum. In such a composition and volume, art, methodically collected by the popes, has never been sent on tour.

The oldest exhibit

"Christ Blessing", XII century.
Museums of the Vatican.

The exhibition opens with an icon of the 12th century, painted by an unknown Roman master. “Christ Blessing” is a unique reminder of the unity of the Christian Church, which will help to trace the parallels between European and ancient Russian art. The Italian Jesus of the 12th century is very similar to the popular image of Russian icons - the Almighty Savior.

The main masterpiece of the exhibition

Michelangelo Merisi, nicknamed Caravaggio. "The position in the coffin." Around 1602-1602. Canvas, oil. Museums of the Vatican.

At the beginning of the 17th century, this canvas made a small revolution. A non-standard, tragic and at the same time simple composition destroyed the stereotypes that had developed by that time in painting (just as Black Square trampled them at the beginning of the 20th century). Through the efforts of the reformers, Catholicism experienced not better times- many saw the salvation of the church in a return to ancient Christian simplicity and vitality. Caravaggio was one of them.

The most poetic painting

Paolo Cagliari, nicknamed Paolo Veronese. Vision of Saint Helena. Around 1575-1580. Canvas, oil. Museums of the Vatican.

It is unlikely that anyone will pass by the large-scale painting of the famous Veronese. Before us is Saint Helena, the mother of the first Roman Christian emperor Constantine. An angel appeared to the heroine and urged her to go to Jerusalem in search of that same cross. Usually the saint was depicted with a cross already found in her hand, but Veronese decided to paint her sleeping - directly during the vision. But this is not the only canon violated by the Italian. According to legend, Elena saw an angel at an advanced age, and on the canvas we see a young Venetian beauty. Veronese did not think long about who to take in the model, and opted for his own wife. The sleeping saint in the portrait repeats the appearance of the artist's wife, who, by a happy coincidence, was also called Elena.

An exhibit with an unusual history

Donato Creti. "Astronomical Observations". 1711 Oil on canvas. Museums of the Vatican.

The work, under which they took the whole hall, is interesting both in its plot and in its history. Before us is a kind of space comic of the 18th century: the artist Donato Creti wrote a series of "Astronomical Observations" depicting all the planets known at that time solar system. In the Age of Enlightenment, scientific stories begin to compete with biblical ones. But the most interesting thing is that “Astronomical Observations” was written by order of Count Luigi Ferdinando Marsili and was intended as a gift to Clement XI. So the aristocrat hoped to convince the Pope to give money for the construction of an observatory in Bologna. It's good that dads took bribes with art - now we have something to look at.

A masterpiece that not everyone will notice

Gentile da Fabriano. “Saint Nicholas calms the storm and saves the ship”, circa 1425. Tempera on wood. Museums of the Vatican.

Gentile da Fabriano is a bit lost in the shadow of eminent neighbors like Raphael and Caravaggio. Meanwhile, his small canvas with the ponderous title “St. Nicholas calms the storm and saves the ship” is very interesting: there was a place on it for both the biblical saint, who, like Superman, flies in and saves unlucky sailors, and the pagan mermaid. And what about the fish woman? In medieval symbolism, mermaids personify demonic power - so she caused a storm, which St. Nicholas “pacifies”.