GIOTTO di Bondone (b. 1267, Vespignano, d. 1337, Firenze) Last Judgment 1306 Fresco, 1000 x 840 cm Cappella Scrovegni (Arena Chapel), Padua The entrance wall is filled by the imposing Last Judgement. This scene is as complex and crowded as the frescoes on the side walls are concentrated and reduced to essentials, After the ninth and tenth centuries the depiction of the final judgment, based on the Book of Revelation, complete with trumpet-playing angels, became one of the important themes of European painters, and such works were often displayed on the western wall of the churches, facing t
GIOTTO di Bondone (b. 1267, Vespignano, d. 1337, Firenze) Last Judgment 1306 Fresco, 1000 x 840 cm Cappella Scrovegni (Arena Chapel), Padua The entrance wall is filled by the imposing Last Judgement. This scene is as complex and crowded as the frescoes on the side walls are concentrated and reduced to essentials, After the ninth and tenth centuries the depiction of the final judgment, based on the Book of Revelation, complete with trumpet-playing angels, became one of the important themes of European painters, and such works were often displayed on the western wall of the churches, facing the apsis. In the style of the Gothic period, Christ as the judge of the world became the central figure in these paintings. This is demonstrated in this excellent Giotto creation. An innovative aspect of this large composition is that it unifies the elements of the angelic choir praising Christ and of the final judgment. In the lower portion of the painting on one side of the huge cross are groups of saints and the blessed, while on the other are the demons and those who have been condemned to hell. Above them, as if at the edge of the heavenly stage, the twelve apostles sit on their thrones. Somewhat higher, on either side of the windows, the eight choirs of angels are visible, while the ninth choir floats in the centre, holding - as if to raise it from the flatness of the wall - the mandorla with the majestic figure of the Judge. Four of the angels sound the fanfare toward the four quarters of the globe, proclaiming the arrival of Judgment Day. The angels in the choirs bear crusading standards and are dressed in helmets and armour as they lead forth Christ's heavenly armies. Thus their nine orders represent the tremendous strengths of the World 's Judge, too. The rigid scheme of painting figures on different scales graded according to their importance does not contribute to a harmonious relationship of parts in a work such as this; from the enormous figure of Christ to the
Size: 3096px × 3712px
Photo credit: © Carlo Bollo / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: 1300, 1300s, 14th, art, artwork, cappella, century, chapel, degli, fresco, frescoes, giotto, historical, history, italian, italy, padova, padua, paint, painter, painting, paintings, scrovegni
