Botticelli and His Times great art of the Renaissance world
Sandro Botticelli leads alongside masterpieces by other artists
St. Mary Magdalene, circa 1500, Oil on panel, Pietro Vannucci, known as Perugino
Botticelli and His Times is fabulously arranged and richly illustrated
I refer to the truth, that the world comes to us, each time we are rewarded with a premier exhibition of art hosted in our city. The exhibition Botticelli and His Times at the Hong Kong Museum of Art is proof.
Flagellation (detail), ca. 1505-1510, Tempera on canvas, Sandro Botticelli
Entrance is provided to this wonderful show for the small sum of HK$30, or free with the purchase of the very affordable Museum Pass, which provides unlimited access to permanent and special exhibitions at all the LCSD Museums.
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The exhibition is jointly organised by the Hong Kong Museum of Art, which reopened not too long ago after extensive renovations, and The Uffizi Galleries, one of Italy’s most prominent art museums located in the centre of Florence.
Adoration of the Magi, circa 1470, Tempera and oil on panel, Cosimo Rosselli
It has been decades since I visited The Uffizi Gallery. During my visit there, I was overwhelmed by the vast treasures on display, including ancient sculptures, paintings, and an unparalleled trove of masterpieces from the Renaissance period.
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The museum houses one of the largest collections of Italian Renaissance artworks and treasures, many of which were bequeathed to them by Anna Maria Luisa de’ Medici, the last heir of the House of Medici.
Madonna and Child with St John the Baptist and Two Angels (detail), 1459, Tempera on panel,Circle of Fancesco di Stefano, know as Pesellino
The Medici family was an Italian banking and political dynasty that started with Cosimo di Giovanni de’ Medici, the patriarch of the house, who derived his power from his wealth as a banker during the first half of the fifteenth century. Through him and his successors, the Medici largely ruled Florence during the Italian Renaissance.
Kiss of Judas ca. 1500 – 1510, Tempera on panel, Master of Marradi
They were patrons of the arts, and their influence in all areas of culture and creative and educational endeavours during that period shaped the careers of artists, sculptors, poets, philosophers and architects.
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Hugely influential for several centuries, the Medici family included four Popes and two Queens of France. The family held the title Duke of Florence, and they wielded tremendous sway over affairs of politics, business and culture.
Botticelli and His Times Masterpieces from the Uffizi exhibition
Their lineage ended with the last direct descendant, Anna Maria Luisa, who had no children and no heir. Nonetheless, she ensured her family’s prominence in Florence would endure by gifting all her personal property and the vast art and treasures commissioned and collected by her family.
Medici collection create the renown of the Uffizi Gallery
She created the Family Pact of 1737, which stated that the Medici collection could not be sold and would forever belong to Florence. This kept the collection intact, and because of this legacy, the influence of the Medici family continues by helping create the renown of The Uffizi Gallery.
St Augustine in his Study (detail), circa 1494, Tempera on panel, Botticelli
The museum and the city’s reputation as being the historical centre of the Italian Renaissance are the reasons why it is a draw for millions of tourists and art enthusiasts.
Portrait of a Young Man with a Red Hat, ca. 1480 – 1500, Oil on panel, Attributed to Lorenzo di Credi
Visiting The Uffizi Gallery in person to see Renaissance masterpieces would be fabulous. However, given this year’s unprecedented travel restrictions and the closure of museums all around the world, it is not possible.
Annunciation, St Anthony Abbot and St John the Baptist (detail), 1452-1453, Tempera on panel, Filippo Lippi
Therefore, I was amazed and delighted when Botticelli and His Times came with a remarkable selection of artwork to the Hong Kong Museum of Art.
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I was elated that such a monumental show was available to us in our own city, because I know that to bring such masterpieces would have taken years to organise and tremendous efforts to achieve as well as to transport to Hong Kong.
St Francis Receiving the Stigmata (detail), circa 1485-1495, Oil on panel, Master of the Borghese Tondo
The exhibition is fabulously arranged. Richly illustrated panels educate visitors on the rebirth known as the Renaissance, which occurred from the fifteenth to sixteenth centuries in Italy. This was a pivotal period in history when wealth and political stability allowed a flourishing of innovation in all fields, including philosophy, art and sciences.
Patronage by the Medici family was pivotal for Botticelli artworks
The Medici family was responsible for many masterpieces through their support of artists and their commission of grand works. Their patronage of the arts was pivotal for the creation of artworks by Alessandro Filipepi, more commonly known as Sandro Botticelli.
St Francis Receiving the Stigmata (detail), circa 1485-1495, Oil on panel, Master of the Borghese Tondo
The display of precious works from The Uffizi Gallery and those borrowed from other institutions show the humanist ideals pursued by artists at the time.
Madonna and Child with St John and Angels (detail), circa 1490, Oil on panel, Francesco Botticini
Although the works by Sandro Botticelli lead this exhibition, masterpieces by other contemporary artists help to juxtapose and explain the renewed interest in classical Greek and Roman cultures, and emphasise Christian iconography.
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Artists like Botticelli typically had several patrons who supported them. Through commissions, he painted some of the masterpieces of the Renaissance, such as Primavera in 1482, and undoubtedly, his most famous, The Birth of Venus in 1485. Both are housed and displayed in The Uffizi.
Detail of Adoration of the Magi (Lami Adoration) (detail), 1474-1475, Tempera on panel, Sandro Botticelli
In the exhibition’s signature painting, Adoration of the Magi, created from 1445 to 1510 as an altarpiece for a chapel, Botticelli creates a pictorial of a sacred scene, Mary with the Christ as a child, receiving the adoration of three wise men.
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However, in this pictorial, Botticelli populates the story with personalities that are wholly alien to the original story, by painting in contemporary individuals, including his patron who commissioned the work, several members of the Medici family, powerful Florentine elites and most strikingly, himself at the bottom right of the artwork, in full-length, wrapped in a large yellow cloak, facing proudly and confidently at the viewer.
Adoration of the Magi (Lami Adoration) (detail of Botticelli self portrait), 1474-1475, Tempera on panel, Sandro Botticelli
His prominent presence in this painting shows a radical departure for an artist. Instead of being diminished as a craftsman, separate from his patrons, he elevated himself to the same stature as them. It showed his ambition and boldness as an artist.
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In Botticelli’s Adoration of the Child and Angels, he creates a classic pictorial of the Madonna kneeling in adoration of the Christ Child, presented by two angels.
Adoration of the Child and Angels, ca. 1500, Tempera on panel, Sandro Botticelli
This “round” painting would have been commissioned for a noble home, works of which were often decorated with holy images and sacred scenes taken from the Bible for domestic worship.
Botticelli and His Times Masterpieces from the Uffizi on display
In secular subject matter, Botticelli created portraits, an artistic genre in its own right, as they were often commissioned by the affluent.
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His Portrait of a Young Woman (Simonetta Vespucci) is said to be a representation of the most beautiful woman in Florence of the time.
Portrait of a Young Woman (Simonetta Vespucci), ca. 1480 – 1485, Tempera on panel, Sandro Botticelli
She is supposedly also the inspiration for his transcendent Venus, in his iconic work The Birth of Venus.
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Masterpieces of the Renaissance world have come to us. Botticelli and His Times is a rare exhibition and a special opportunity for Hong Kong art enthusiasts to enjoy iconic works of art close to home.
Text & Photo Cammy Yiu
