Baptism of Christ (Verrocchio)

Baptism of Christ (Battesimo di Cristo)
Verrocchio Leonardo da Vinci Sandro Botticelli (?) , Around 1475
Tempera and oil on panel
177 × 151 cm
Galleria degli Uffizi , Florence

Detail of the angel, the left one by Leonardo

detail

The Baptism of Christ is a painting by Andrea del Verrocchio with the collaboration of the young Leonardo da Vinci and possibly another person. It is the main work among Verrocchio's paintings and dates from the second half of the 15th century.

Client and period of origin

According to Giorgio Vasari's tradition, Verrocchio created the painting as a commissioned work for the Vallombrosan monastery of San Salvi in Florence . It is therefore one of the few paintings that can be safely attributed to Verrocchio. The art history literature may not be limited to a specific year of origin, the most widely mentioned period is from 1470 to 1478, mentioned is somewhat narrower still 1472 to 1475, mostly the period "around 1475". Da Vinci's additions and revisions could have dragged on into the 1580s. The painting was still in the client's monastery church in the 16th century; today it is in the Uffizi .

Representation

The depiction of the baptism of Christ follows a traditional approach. The two main characters, the baptized on the left and John the Baptist on the right, stand in the Jordan , with John emptying a bowl of water over Christ's head. Above the two central figures , whose dominance probably comes from Verrocchio's main activity as a sculptor, the hands of God and the dove are depicted as symbols of the Holy Spirit , together with the figure of Jesus they form the Trinity . Two angel figures are attached to the holy event on the left. One of the two wears a long cloth over his arm, lined with a precious gold border . The background of the events depicted on three levels is formed by a rocky, wooded landscape behind John and an extensive, ideal river landscape behind Christ and the angels.

Participating artists

According to research, the history of art has shown two periods of origin. The painting was initially mainly done by Verrocchio, who painted in tempera , but left the picture unfinished. According to Vasari, Leonardo then created the figure of the angel on the left, he had been a student in Verrocchio's workshop from around 1470. Da Vinci did not use tempera but oil . Vasari reports on what happened next: “Here (the painting, author's note) he was helped by Leonardo da Vinci, who was still very young at the time and his pupil; In that painting there is an angel of him who succeeded better than the other things; which is why Andrea, who recognized this, decided not to touch a brush, as Leonardo had done better in this art when he was still young. ” . After the angel, whose face is shown in a three-quarter view, which requires a good knowledge of the foreshortening of the facial lines, Leonardo created the other, unfinished parts, these are the hands of the right angel and the river landscape in the background. He also reworked other parts that Verrocchio had already completed, especially on the body and face of the person to be baptized. The art-historical literature thinks to recognize yet another hand, with parts of the literature from Sandro Botticelli as an artist who is also involved. Botticelli belonged to Verrocchio's circle of assistants, although he had his own workshop from around 1470.

Differences in the representations

The main differences in the way of painting that can be seen in this painting are the opposing views of Verrocchio and Leonardo's in the treatment of light and color. Verrocchio's figures and parts of the landscape are characterized by a harsh treatment of the surfaces and strong light-dark contrasts, which can be seen above all in the depiction of John. The figure seems sober to some, a certain heaviness can be attested to it. Leonardo's figure of the angel, the river landscape and the parts of Christ he has changed are completely different from it. The colors are finely graduated and slowly merge, while Verrocchio's hard contours give way to flowing, blurred transitions to the hazy background. While Verrocchio's clear lines were still a model for others, such as Filippino Lippi , Leonardo, whose first painting that was decisively influenced by him, is already taking a different path. The sfumato he developed is already recognizable, but at this point he was still the “restless student”.

literature

• Patrick de Rynck: The Art of Reading Pictures - The Old Masters deciphering and understanding . Parthas Verlag, Berlin 2005, ISBN 3-86601-695-6 .
• Will Durant : The Splendor and Decay of the Italian Renaissance . Volume 8 from Will and Ariel Durant's Cultural History of Mankind . Südwest Verlag, Munich 1978, ISBN 3-517-00562-2
• Max Semrau: The Art of the Renaissance in Italy and in the North . 3rd edition, Vol. III from Wilhelm Lübke, Grundriss der Kunstgeschichte , 14th edition, Paul Neff Verlag, Esslingen 1912.
• Rolf Toman (Ed.): The art of the Italian Renaissance - architecture, sculpture, painting, drawing . Tandem Verlag, Cologne 2007, ISBN 978-3-8331-4582-7
• Giorgio Vasari: Lives of the Most Famous Painters, Sculptors and Builders . Edited by Ludwig Schorn and Ernst Förster. Marixverlag, Wiesbaden 2010. ISBN 978-3-86539-224-4
• Franziska Windt: Andrea del Verrocchio and Leonardo da Vinci: collaboration in sculpture and painting . Rhema, Münster 2003, ISBN 3-930454-39-4
• Stefano Zuffi: The Renaissance - Art, Architecture, History, Masterpieces . DuMont Buchverlag, 2008, ISBN 978-3-8321-9113-9 .

Web links

Commons : Baptism of Christ (Verrocchio)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Inventory 1890 of the Uffizi
• Baptism of Christ (Verrocchio) at Zeno.org .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Toman (Ed.): The art of the Italian Renaissance - architecture, sculpture, painting, drawing , p. 274.
2. ^ Vasari: Lives of the most famous painters, sculptors and builders , p. 272.
3. ^ Zuffi: The Renaissance - Art, Architecture, History, Masterpieces , p. 140.
4. ^ Stützer: Painting of the Italian Renaissance , p. 45.
5. ↑ representative: de Rynck: The art of reading pictures - The old masters decipher and understand , p. 70.
6. ↑ de Rynck: The Art of Reading Pictures - The Old Masters Deciphering and Understanding , p. 71.
7. ↑ de Rynck: The Art of Reading Pictures - The Old Masters Deciphering and Understanding , p. 71.
8. ↑ Toman (Ed.): The art of the Italian Renaissance - architecture, sculpture, painting, drawing , p. 274.
9. ^ Zuffi: The Renaissance - Art, Architecture, History, Masterpieces , p. 140.
10. ^ Vasari: Lives of the most famous painters, sculptors and builders , p. 272.
11. ^ Stützer: Painting of the Italian Renaissance , p. 44.
12. ^ Zuffi: The Renaissance - Art, Architecture, History, Masterpieces , p. 141.
13. ↑ Toman (Ed.): The art of the Italian Renaissance - architecture, sculpture, painting, drawing , p. 274.
14. ↑ Toman (Ed.): The art of the Italian Renaissance - architecture, sculpture, painting, drawing , p. 274.
15. ↑ Knapp: The artistic culture of the occident , Vol. I, p. 430.
16. ↑ Toman (Ed.): The art of the Italian Renaissance - architecture, sculpture, painting, drawing , p. 274.
17. ^ Zuffi: The Renaissance - Art, Architecture, History, Masterpieces , p. 140.
18. ^ Stützer: Painting of the Italian Renaissance , p. 44.
19. ^ Zuffi: The Renaissance - Art, Architecture, History, Masterpieces , p. 140.