BOTTICELLI, Sandro (b. 1445, Firenze, d. 1510, Firenze) The Story of Nastagio degli Onesti (first episode) 1483 Tempera on panel, 83 x 138 cm Museo del Prado, Madrid Lorenzo the Magnificent commissioned Botticelli to paint four episodes from the story of Nastagio degli Onesti in Boccaccio's Decameron. The subject-matter of this story is at once fierce and chivalric, similar to the "courtly" culture which centre around Lorenzo. The occasion for these paintings was the wedding of Gianozzo Pucci, Lorenzo's nephew, to Lucrezia Bini. They were meant to adorn the paneling of their formal s
BOTTICELLI, Sandro (b. 1445, Firenze, d. 1510, Firenze) The Story of Nastagio degli Onesti (first episode) 1483 Tempera on panel, 83 x 138 cm Museo del Prado, Madrid Lorenzo the Magnificent commissioned Botticelli to paint four episodes from the story of Nastagio degli Onesti in Boccaccio's Decameron. The subject-matter of this story is at once fierce and chivalric, similar to the "courtly" culture which centre around Lorenzo. The occasion for these paintings was the wedding of Gianozzo Pucci, Lorenzo's nephew, to Lucrezia Bini. They were meant to adorn the paneling of their formal salon. Later, the paintings were dispersed: three are in Madrid, and the fourth is in a private American collection. The conception of these four panels is entirely Botticelli's, even though a large part of the actual painting was left to the workshop. The Story of Nastagio degli Onesti is taken from Boccaccio's Decameron, the fifth tale of the ninth day. The most pleasing effect of the works is produced by the harmonious background settings in the episodes that take place in the pine-woods of Ravenna. In the paintings drama and formal elegance (exemplified in the agility of the figures and in the graceful movements of people and animals) blend together to give us the impression of a story half way between reality and phantasy, here enlivened by the pure colours of the architecture and by the subdued representation of nature. The first eoisode depicts Degli Onesti, an honest young man, strolling through the forest, terribly distressed because his fiancé had refused to marry him. He sees a nude woman appear before him, pursued by a pack of dogs, followed by a knight in armor. *** Keywords: ************* Author: BOTTICELLI, Sandro Title: The Story of Nastagio degli Onesti (first episode) Time-line: 1451-1500 School: Italian Form: painting Type: historical
Size: 4000px × 2524px
Photo credit: © Carlo Bollo / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: artwork, paint, painter, painting, paintings
