Recommended publication: Siena - The Rise of Painting, 1300-1350
National Gallery Global, 2024, 311 pages, Hardcover, ISBN: 9781857097160
Fondo Oro:
For any devotee of the Trecento, the first half of the fourteenth century in Siena represents the absolute pinnacle of the "Fondo Oro" tradition. It is with great enthusiasm that I include Siena: The Rise of Painting, 1300–1350 among our recommended publications.This volume, produced by National Gallery Global, captures the precise moment when the prestige of painting reached a divine summit. What makes this work particularly resonant is its focus on the interdisciplinary "renaissance" of the time. It does not look at painting in isolation; rather, it explores how the luminous panels of Duccio, Simone Martini, and the Lorenzetti brothers were informed by the intricate textures of imported silks, the precision of goldsmiths, and the delicacy of carved ivory.To look at a Sienese masterpiece is to witness a dialogue between various luxury crafts, and this book provides the scholarly map to navigate that rich exchange. It is a beautifully illustrated testament to a fifty-year period of innovation that changed the course of Western art forever. For the serious student of the Sienese school, this is an essential and glowing companion.
An exploration of a crucial turning point in Italian art, the early 1300s in the city of Siena
"This is a book to be savored and treasured, much like the objects it celebrates." - Ann Landi, Wall Street Journal
In the early 1300s, the city of Siena gave rise to an extraordinary period of creativity and innovation. Painters, sculptors, and goldsmiths produced remarkable works whose impact was felt far beyond the city's walls. From vast altarpieces to portable objects for private devotion, the art emanating from Siena left an enduring legacy.
This book explores a crucial turning point in Italian art when the prestige of painting reached new heights. Siena became the centre of a rich exchange of ideas, as painters took inspiration from marble and ivory sculptures, intricate metalwork, and precious imported silks to enhance the power of their work. Travelling beyond their native city, Sienese artists made their mark across Italy and into northern Europe.
Beautifully illustrated and featuring important new scholarship, chapters explore masterpieces by four of Siena's most illustrious painters-Duccio, Simone Martini, and Ambrogio and Pietro Lorenzetti-alongside objects in other media and from other countries and cultures, encouraging fresh perspectives and dialogues between these groundbreaking works.
