Barna da Siena

Last updated
Barna da Siena Vite de piu eccellenti pittori scultori ed architetti (1767) (14597594100).jpg
Barna da Siena
'Christ Bearing the Cross, with a Dominican Friar', tempera on panel, 1330-1350, Frick Collection 'Christ Bearing the Cross, with a Dominican Friar', tempera on panel painting by Barna da Siena , 1330-1350, Frick Collection.jpg
'Christ Bearing the Cross, with a Dominican Friar', tempera on panel, 1330-1350, Frick Collection

Barna da Siena, also known as Berna di Siena, was presumed to be a Sienese painter active from about 1330 to 1350.

Contents

The painter was first referred to by Lorenzo Ghiberti in his I Commentarii (mid 15th century) as a Sienese painter who painted several works in Tuscany, including many stories from the Old Testament in San Gimignano. Giorgio Vasari referred in the first edition of his Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects (1550) to the Sienese painter ‘Berna’ who was responsible for frescos of Old Testament scenes in the Collegiata di San Gimignano. In the second edition of the Vite (1568) Vasari only connected the artist with the New Testament scenes in that church, dating them to the very end of Barna’s life, apparently to 1381.

Because of the wide variations in style and quality in the New Testament paintings in San Gimignano it is believed that they were the work of three or four distinct painters. It is further believed that Vasari's dating of the New Testament scenes was incorrect as on stylistic grounds they should be dated to the period 1330-1340s. Because of these problems with the identification of the artist a majority of scholars now believe that ‘Barna’ is a historical fiction. This conclusion has generated various theories on the authorship of the San Gimignano frescoes. The view is that the Collegiata frescoes and other panel paintings attributed to the artist are all closely linked to the work of followers of Simone Martini and the circle of Lippo Memmi. [1]

Life

Because of a lack of signed works Barna has been credited as the master of the Collegiata di San Gimignano. It is believed that his pupil Giovanni d'Asciano assisted him on the frescoes and finished the left-over portions after Barna reportedly fell from a scaffolding and died supposedly at a young age. It is suggested, based on the works of biographer Giorgio Vasari, that the master working in the Collegiata di San Gimignano was named Bernardo Bertini. Bernardo was notably taken prisoner in 1335 during a skirmish with the Luccans. He later went to Siena and studied in Simone Martini's workshop. Documents show that in 1355 he was either absent from Siena or dead. [2] This supports the notion that Barna, the master of San Gimignano, died fairly young, somewhere around 1360. When captured in 1335 it was noted that he was just a lad. If he was born shortly before 1320 and died somewhere before 1360 then he could not have been older than forty before his death.

Style of work

Though not much is certain about Barna's life, his work is very distinct. He is known for his dramatically expressive figures and using a more close-in composition than his predecessors. His version of The Raising of Lazarus, [3] for example displays far fewer figures than Duccio's version and there is much more emphasis on each subject's emotions and actions. Their expressions are much more dramatic and there is a sense of human-ness that isn't seen in the work of Sienese painters before him. Barna seemingly ignores the Gothic formulae exemplified by Simone Martini and his disciples. [4] Instead his figures feature a sense of volume and emotionalism, reminiscent of Lorenzetti and other Florentine painters, further strengthening the claim that Barna was not a native of Siena, but more likely hailed from Florence.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sienese School</span>

The Sienese School of painting flourished in Siena, Italy, between the 13th and 15th centuries. Its most important artists include Duccio, whose work shows Byzantine influence, his pupil Simone Martini, the brothers Pietro and Ambrogio Lorenzetti and Domenico and Taddeo di Bartolo, Sassetta, and Matteo di Giovanni.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Duccio</span> 13th and 14th-century Italian painter

Duccio di Buoninsegna was an Italian painter active in Siena, Tuscany, in the late 13th and early 14th century. He was hired throughout his life to complete many important works in government and religious buildings around Italy. Duccio is considered one of the greatest Italian painters of the Middle Ages, and is credited with creating the painting styles of Trecento and the Sienese school. He also contributed significantly to the Sienese Gothic style.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simone Martini</span> Italian painter from the 14th century (1284–1344)

Simone Martini was an Italian painter born in Siena. He was a major figure in the development of early Italian painting and greatly influenced the development of the International Gothic style.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jacopo della Quercia</span> Italian sculptor

Jacopo della Quercia, also known as Jacopo di Pietro d'Agnolo di Guarnieri, was an Italian sculptor of the Renaissance, a contemporary of Brunelleschi, Ghiberti and Donatello. He is considered a precursor of Michelangelo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ambrogio Lorenzetti</span> Italian painter (1290–1348)

Ambrogio Lorenzetti or Ambruogio Laurati was an Italian painter of the Sienese school. He was active from approximately 1317 to 1348. He painted The Allegory of Good and Bad Government in the Sala dei Nove in Siena's Palazzo Pubblico. His elder brother was the painter Pietro Lorenzetti.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pietro Lorenzetti</span> Italian painter (1280–1348)

Pietro Lorenzetti or Pietro Laurati was an Italian painter, active between c. 1306 and 1345. Together with his younger brother Ambrogio, he introduced naturalism into Sienese art. In their artistry and experiments with three-dimensional and spatial arrangements, the brothers foreshadowed the art of the Renaissance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vecchietta</span> Italian painter

Lorenzo di Pietro, known as Vecchietta, was an Italian Sienese School painter, sculptor, goldsmith, and architect of the Renaissance. He is among the artists profiled in Vasari's Le Vite delle più eccellenti pittori, scultori, ed architettori.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Collegiata di Santa Maria Assunta, San Gimignano</span> Medieval/Renaissance church with important architecture & art

The Collegiata di Santa Maria Assunta or Duomo di San Gimignano is a Roman Catholic collegiate church and minor basilica in San Gimignano, in Tuscany in central Italy. It contains important cycles of Renaissance frescoes by artists including Domenico Ghirlandaio, Benozzo Gozzoli, Taddeo di Bartolo, Lippo Memmi and Bartolo di Fredi. It falls within the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the "Historic Centre of San Gimignano", with its frescoes being described by UNESCO as "works of outstanding beauty".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benozzo Gozzoli</span> Italian painter (c.1421-1497)

Benozzo Gozzoli was an Italian Renaissance painter from Florence. A pupil of Fra Angelico, Gozzoli is best known for a series of murals in the Magi Chapel of the Palazzo Medici-Riccardi, depicting festive, vibrant processions with fine attention to detail and a pronounced International Gothic influence. The chapel's fresco cycle reveals a new Renaissance interest in nature with its realistic depiction of landscapes and vivid human portraits. Gozzoli is considered one of the most prolific fresco painters of his generation. While he was mainly active in Tuscany, he also worked in Umbria and Rome.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Domenico di Bartolo</span> Early Renaissance Italian painter

Domenico di Bartolo, born in Asciano, Siena, was a Sienese painter who became active during the early Renaissance period. He was named by the famous painter, writer and historian Giorgio Vasari as the nephew of well-reputed Italian artist Taddeo di Bartolo, who is featured in Vasari's Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects. By the early 1400s, Domenico di Bartolo was one of Siena's artists most influenced by the new Florentine style of painting. During the time that he was active and working, Domenico was the only Sienese painter to have received commissions by clients in Florence. Domenico was also employed by Lorenzo Vecchietta, otherwise referred to as Lorenzo di Pietro, to work alongside him for the fresco The Care of the Sick, which is today considered a masterpiece of the Pilgrim's Hall in the hospital Santa Maria della Scala (Siena).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taddeo di Bartolo</span> Italian painter

Taddeo di Bartolo, also known as Taddeo Bartoli, was an Italian painter of the Sienese School during the early Renaissance. He is among the artists profiled in Vasari's biographies of artists or Vite. Vasari claims he is the uncle of Domenico di Bartolo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ugolino di Nerio</span> Italian painter

Ugolino di Nerio was an Italian painter active in his native city of Siena and in Florence between the years 1317 and 1327.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bartolo di Fredi</span> Italian painter

Bartolo di Fredi, also called Bartolo Battiloro, was an Italian painter, born in Siena, classified as a member of the Sienese School.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lippo Memmi</span> Italian painter (c. 1291 – 1356)

Lippo Memmi was an Italian painter from Siena. He was the foremost follower of Simone Martini, who was his brother-in-law.

<i>Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects</i> 16th-century book of artist biographies by Giorgio Vasari

The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects, often simply known as The Lives, is a series of artist biographies written by 16th-century Italian painter and architect Giorgio Vasari, which is considered "perhaps the most famous, and even today the most-read work of the older literature of art", "some of the Italian Renaissance's most influential writing on art", and "the first important book on art history".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antonio Veneziano (painter)</span> Italian painter

Antonio Veneziano, was an Italian painter who was active mainly in Siena, Florence and Pisa, documented between 1369 and 1419.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bastiano Mainardi</span> Italian painter

Bastiano di Bartolo Mainardi (1466–1513) was an Italian painter of the Early Renaissance. He was born in San Gimignano and was active there and in Florence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siena</span> Comune in Tuscany, Italy

Siena is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. Siena is the 12th largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, with a population of 53,062 as of 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Memmo di Filippuccio</span> Italian painter

Memmo di Filippuccio was a 14th-century painter from Siena, Italy.

<i>Guidoriccio da Fogliano at the Siege of Montemassi</i>

Guidoriccio da Fogliano at the Siege of Montemassi is a fresco on the western wall of the Sala del Mappamondo in the Palazzo Pubblico in Siena. It shows Guidoriccio da Fogliano, the commander of the Sienese troops, on horseback against the background of a landscape in which the siege of Montemassi takes place..

References

  1. H. B. J. Maginnis. " Barna." Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. Oxford University Press. Web. 25 Feb. 2016
  2. Faison, S. L. Jr (Dec 1932). "Barna and Bartolo di Fredi". The Art Bulletin. 14 (4): 285–315. doi:10.1080/00043079.1932.11408618.
  3. Sullivan, Ruth Wilkins (Sep 1988). "Duccio's Raising of Lazarus Reexamined". The Art Bulletin. 70 (3): 374–387. doi:10.1080/00043079.1988.10788578.
  4. Pope-Hennessy, John (Feb 1946). "Barna, the Pseudo-Barna and Giovanni d'Asciano". The Burlington Magazine for Connoisseurs. 88 (515): 34–37.

Sources

Further reading

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Barna da Siena at Wikimedia Commons