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The '''Adoration of the Magi''' is a painting by Italian painter [[Filippino Lippi]].<ref name=":9">{{Cite web |title=Adoration of the Magi by Filippino Lippi |url=https://www.uffizi.it/en/artworks/adoration-of-the-magi-filippino-lippi |access-date=2024-12-08 |website=Uffizi Galleries}}</ref> |
The '''Adoration of the Magi''' is a [[panel painting]] in [[tempera]] by the [[Italian Renaissance painter]] [[Filippino Lippi]], of the very common subject of the [[Adoration of the Magi]], signed and dated 1496.<ref name=":9">{{Cite web |title=Adoration of the Magi by Filippino Lippi |url=https://www.uffizi.it/en/artworks/adoration-of-the-magi-filippino-lippi |access-date=2024-12-08 |website=Uffizi Galleries}}</ref> It is now in the [[Uffizi|Galleria degli Uffizi]] in Florence.<ref name=":9" /> |
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The panel was painted for the monastery of San Donato in [[Vicchio|Scopeto]] ({{ill|San Donato in Scopeto|it|Chiesa di San Donato in Scopeto}}), as a substitution for [[Adoration of the Magi (Leonardo)|the one commissioned]] in 1481 from [[Leonardo da Vinci]], who left it unfinished. In 1529 it was acquired by Cardinal [[Carlo de' Medici]] and in 1666 it became part of the Uffizi collection, left to the city by the last of the Medicis.<ref name=":9" /> |
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The painting is set in a country landscape, in front of a stable over which the [[Star of Bethlehem]], that guided the [[Biblical Magi|Three Magi]], is shining. In the background, there are scenes of their journey, from the sighting of the star to their passage via Herod's palace.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Parenti |first=Daniela |title=Adoration of the Magi by Leonardo da Vinci |url=https://www.uffizi.it/en/artworks/leonardo-adoration-of-the-magi |access-date=2024-11-12 |website=Uffizi Galleries}}</ref> The viewers attention is drawn to the kneeling man on the left, clad in a luxurious, fur-lined yellow robe and holding an [[astrolabe]], symbolizing the Magi's astrological knowledge.<ref name=":9" /> This figure is believed to be a portrait of [[Pierfrancesco the Elder|Pier Francesco de’ Medici.]]<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":2" /><ref name=":10">{{Cite book |last=Bleattler |first=Henry R. |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/275780937/ |title=Adoration of the Medici: Fifteenth Century Construction of a Princely Identity through the Expropriation of Magian Iconography |publisher=Ph.D. Dissertation The Florida State University |year=2001 |pages=234–235, figs. 6.6, 6.7}}</ref> |
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Filippino Lippi followed Leonardo's setting, in particular in the central part of the work. Much of its inspiration was clearly derived from [[Botticelli]]'s ''[[Adoration of the Magi of 1475 (Botticelli)|Adoration of the Magi]]'', also in the Uffizi: this is evident in the disposition of the characters on the two sides, with the Holy Family portrayed in the centre under. Similarly to Botticelli's work, Filippino also portrayed numerous members of the [[House of Medici|Medici]] cadet line, who had adhered to the [[Savonarola|Savonarolian]] Republic in the period in which the work was executed. On the left, kneeling in a luxurious, fur-lined yellow robe and holding an [[astrolabe]], is [[Pierfrancesco di Lorenzo de' Medici|Pierfrancesco de' Medici]], who had died 20 years before.<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":2" /><ref name=":10">{{Cite book |last=Bleattler |first=Henry R. |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/275780937/ |title=Adoration of the Medici: Fifteenth Century Construction of a Princely Identity through the Expropriation of Magian Iconography |publisher=Ph.D. Dissertation The Florida State University |year=2001 |pages=234–235, figs. 6.6, 6.7}}</ref> Behind him, standing, are his two sons [[Giovanni il Popolano|Giovanni]], holding a goblet, and [[Lorenzo il Popolano|Lorenzo]], from whom a page is removing a crown. |
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The general style is that of Filippino's late career, characterized by a greater care to details and by a nervous rhythm in the forms, influenced by the knowledge of foreign painting schools (as also in the landscape of the background). The painting is set in a country landscape, in front of a stable over which the [[Star of Bethlehem]], that guided the [[Biblical Magi|Three Magi]], is shining. In the background, there are scenes of their journey, from the sighting of the star to their passage via Herod's palace.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Parenti |first=Daniela |title=Adoration of the Magi by Leonardo da Vinci |url=https://www.uffizi.it/en/artworks/leonardo-adoration-of-the-magi |access-date=2024-11-12 |website=Uffizi Galleries}}</ref> |
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== Patron and commission == |
== Patron and commission == |
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The painting is signed and dated (''"Filippus me pinsit de Lipis florentinus addi 29 di marzo 1496''"). Originally, the subject was commissioned by the monks of the monastery of [[:it:Chiesa di San Donato in Scopeto|San Donato in Scopeto]] in [[Florence]], and begun by [[Leonardo da Vinci]] in 1481.<ref name=":2" /> The [[Augustinians|Augustinian]] monks at the church of San Donato in Scopeto wanted Leonardo to paint a panel for the high [[altar]] in the church.<ref name=":2" /> In 1481, Leonardo abandoned his work on the painting, because he was called to the court of [[Ludovico Sforza]] in [[Milan]].<ref name=":2" /> Leonardo's abandoned work [https://www.uffizi.it/en/artworks/leonardo-adoration-of-the-magi survives today at the Uffizi], but not in the best shape or form.<ref name=":2" /> The Augustinian monks still wanted the painting for their church and they waited for Leonardo's return.<ref name=":2" /> Eventually they decided to find another artist to do the job, and chose Filippino Lippi.<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":2" /> This is not the first time that Leonardo and Filippino exchanged works.<ref name=":9" /> For example, in the 1480s Leonardo had to give over the designing of the altarpiece for the [[Palazzo Vecchio|Palazzo della Signoria]] to Filippino Lippi, who completed the artwork in 1486.<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":72" /> |
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| ⚫ | The reason for Leonardo's abandonment of the Signoria altarpiece remains unclear. Later on in 1505 Leonardo abandoned another artwork, a wall painting of the [[Battle of Anghiari]], in the Palazzo della Signoria, where the [[Gonfaloniere of Justice]], [[Piero Soderini]], claims that Leonardo may have been sent to Milan by the request of [[Charles I d'Amboise|Charles d'Amboise]] and [[Louis XII|King Louis XII]].<ref name=":72">{{Cite web |last1=Alessandro |first1=Vezzosi |last2=Sabato |first2=Agnese |last3=Frost |first3=Catherine |title=Palazzo Vecchio (formerly Palazzo della Signoria) |url=https://www.latoscanadileonardo.it/en/places/metropolitan-city-of-florence/municipality-of-florence/palazzo-vecchio.html |archive-date= |access-date=2024-11-12 |website=Museo Galileo}}</ref> Although it is unclear why Leonardo abandoned the commission of the Adoration of the Magi, it would be reasonable to assume that he had been called away to another job, resulting in him abandoning his work in the palazzo.<ref name=":32">{{Cite book |last=Feinberg |first=Larry J. |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/abs/young-leonardo/adoration-and-leonardos-military-interests/D366B065547C01B2797A9FECAD95DDF4 |title=The Young Leonardo |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2011 |isbn=978-1-107-68822-3 |location=Cambridge |pages=139–144 |chapter=The Adoration and Leonardo’s Military Interests}}</ref><ref name=":72" /> Based off their prior interactions, Leonardo instructed his father to give drafts of the ''Adoration'' to Filippino.<ref name=":32" /> Filippino Lippi started working on the painting soon after receiving the commission to paint the Adoration of the Magi.<ref name=":9" /> He is believed to have received the commission in the early 1494, but began painting in November.<ref name=":04">{{Cite journal |last=Nelson |first=Jonathan K. |date=2021-02-16 |title=Ethiopian Christians on the Margins: Symbolic Blackness in Filippino Lippi's Adoration of the Magi and Miracle of St Philip |url= |journal=Renaissance Studies |language=en |volume=35 |issue=5 |pages=857–879 |doi=10.1111/rest.12722 |issn=0269-1213}}</ref> |
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Filippino's father, [[Filippo Lippi]], also created a version of the ''Adoration of the Magi'',<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Adoration of the Magi |url=https://www.nga.gov/collection/art-object-page.41581.html |access-date=2024-12-03 |website=www.nga.gov |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Stebbins |first=Madeleine |title=The Adoration of the Magi |url=https://stpaulcenter.com/the-adoration-of-the-magi/ |access-date=2024-12-03 |website=St. Paul Center |language=en-US}}</ref> as had most successful painters of religious subject in the period. |
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== Description and subject == |
== Description and subject == |
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| ⚫ | The figures surrounding the Virgin represent the three [[Biblical Magi]] and their entourages, but some are believed to be [[donor portrait]]s depicting members of the [[House of Medici|Medici]] family.<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":2" /> The [[Holy Family]] is located in the centre of the painting, flanked by Medici family members.<ref name=":9" /> The three Magi kneel in the foreground.<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":2" /> In order to pay homage to [[Pierfrancesco di Lorenzo de' Medici|Pierfrancesco de' Medici]], and his sons, the Augustinian monks of San Donato in Scopeto commissioned a painting from Leonardo da Vinci in 1481 (discussed in above section, see: Patron and Commission).<ref name=":2" /> Although Leonardo abandoned his work, the Augustinian monks required Filippino Lippi to include the same figures.<ref name=":2" /> |
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| ⚫ | The figures surrounding the Virgin represent |
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Lippi included portraits of three members of the Medici family.<ref name=":10" /> For instance, in the bottom left corner of the painting there is a man wearing a golden cloak, lined with fur.<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":2" /> As he kneels before the Christ-child, he is seen holding a large golden [[astrolabe]].<ref name=":10" /> Several scholars have suggested that this figure may the represent [[Melchior (magus)|Melchior]] the oldest of the Magi, as a portrait of [[Pierfrancesco di Lorenzo de' Medici|Pierfrancesco de' Medici]], though the item he holds is not the typical gift that the Magi present to the Christ-Child, gold.<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":10" /><ref name=":04" /> Bleattler does not go on to discuss any portrait identity of the remaining two Magi in the painting,<ref name=":10" /> or other figures. |
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Above Pierfrancesco in the golden cloak, there are two male figures who Jonathan K. Nelson believes represent Pierfrancesco's sons, [[Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de' Medici]] (1463–1503), shown being crowned and serves as the youngest of the Magi, [[Caspar (magus)|Caspar]], and his brother, [[Giovanni il Popolano|Giovanni de' Medici]] (1467–1498), serves as a page.<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":2" /> Giovanni, together with his older brother, holds a large gold and silver vessel lidded [[Chalice|goblet]], to give to baby [[Jesus]].<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":2" /><ref name=":04" /> With this interpretation, one Magi, the middle one, remains unaccounted for still.<ref name=":04" /> He may be either of the two remaining men kneeling in the foreground.<ref name=":04" /> |
Above Pierfrancesco in the golden cloak, there are two male figures who Jonathan K. Nelson believes represent Pierfrancesco's sons, [[Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de' Medici]] (1463–1503), shown being crowned and serves as the youngest of the Magi, [[Caspar (magus)|Caspar]], and his brother, [[Giovanni il Popolano|Giovanni de' Medici]] (1467–1498), serves as a page.<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":2" /> Giovanni, together with his older brother, holds a large gold and silver vessel lidded [[Chalice|goblet]], to give to baby [[Jesus]].<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":2" /><ref name=":04" /> With this interpretation, one Magi, the middle one, remains unaccounted for still.<ref name=":04" /> He may be either of the two remaining men kneeling in the foreground.<ref name=":04" /> |
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=== Christian Ethiopians and ideas of the Orient === |
=== Christian Ethiopians and ideas of the Orient === |
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During Filippino Lippi's life, new artwork increasingly contained elements of the [[Orient]].<ref name=":04" /><ref name=":125">{{Cite book |last1=Christian |first1=Kathleen R. |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/1050039882 |title=European Art and the Wider World, 1350–1550 |last2=Clark |first2=Leah |publisher=Manchester University Press |year=2017 |isbn=978-1-5261-2290-2 |oclc=1050039882}}</ref> At the of the year 1441 during the [[Council of Florence]], four Ethiopian [[monk]]s were present, who attested that their ruler controlled a Christian kingdom in [[Christianity in Ethiopia|Ethiopia]] larger than all of Europe.<ref name=":04" /> The Europeans were intrigued by this large Christian kingdom and drew connections with their prior knowledge of the mythical figure of [[Prester John]].<ref name=":04" /> This motivated European artists, especially those of the Italian Renaissance, to increasingly include dark skinned figures in kings in the Adoration of the Magi.<ref name=":04" /><ref name=":125" /> This is seen when examining the multitude of scenes of the Adoration of the Magi that were painted in this period.<ref name=":125" /> Many of the paintings include [[Oriental carpets in Renaissance painting|oriental carpets]] and halos with [[Pseudo-Kufic|pseudo-Arabic]] script.<ref name=":125" /> Contrary to this popular movement, Lippi did not include oriental objects like carpets in his painting of the ''Adoration of the Magi''.<ref name=":125" /> However, Lippi included Muslim men who are seen wearing turbans on the sides of the painting.<ref name=":125" /> |
During Filippino Lippi's life, new artwork increasingly contained elements of the [[Orient]].<ref name=":04" /><ref name=":125">{{Cite book |last1=Christian |first1=Kathleen R. |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/1050039882 |title=European Art and the Wider World, 1350–1550 |last2=Clark |first2=Leah |publisher=Manchester University Press |year=2017 |isbn=978-1-5261-2290-2 |oclc=1050039882}}</ref> At the of the year 1441 during the [[Council of Florence]], four Ethiopian [[monk]]s were present, who attested that their ruler controlled a Christian kingdom in [[Christianity in Ethiopia|Ethiopia]] larger than all of Europe.<ref name=":04" /> The Europeans were intrigued by this large Christian kingdom and drew connections with their prior knowledge of the mythical figure of [[Prester John]].<ref name=":04" /> This motivated European artists, especially those of the Italian Renaissance, to increasingly include dark skinned figures in kings in the Adoration of the Magi.<ref name=":04" /><ref name=":125" /> This is seen when examining the multitude of scenes of the Adoration of the Magi that were painted in this period.<ref name=":125" /> Many of the paintings include [[Oriental carpets in Renaissance painting|oriental carpets]] and halos with [[Pseudo-Kufic|pseudo-Arabic]] script.<ref name=":125" /> Contrary to this popular movement, Lippi did not include oriental objects like carpets in his painting of the ''Adoration of the Magi''.<ref name=":125" /> However, Lippi included Muslim men who are seen wearing turbans on the sides of the painting.<ref name=":125" /> |
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Unlike some other depictions of [[Adoration of the Magi|The Adoration of the Magi]] |
Unlike some other depictions of [[Adoration of the Magi|The Adoration of the Magi]] in [[Italian Renaissance painting]] where one of the Magi, [[Balthazar (magus)|Balthazar]] was sometimes depicted with dark skin''',''' Filippino Lippi shows all three of the Magi as white men.<ref name=":2" /> However, he includes one African in the bottom right corner of the painting; this figure is not a king or attendant.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":04" /> Scholars have suggested that this Black man is supposed to symbolize the first of the [[gentile]]s who chose Christianity as their religion.<ref name=":04" /> The number of Africans who accepted [[Jesus|Christ]] is discussed by [[Augustine of Hippo|Saint Augustine's]] epiphany sermons.<ref name=":04" /> Although it is difficult to pinpoint the reason as to why Lippi chose to do this, the trend is seen in similar Italian Renaissance art during the 1490s where an increasing amount of Africans, specifically [[Christianity in Ethiopia|Ethiopian Christins]] are included into the biblical scene of the [[Adoration of the Magi]], in order to show that dark skinned people were also supporters of Christ.<ref name=":04" /> This is contrary to the standard depiction of dark skinned individuals as Balthazar the magus, servants, or enslaved peoples.<ref name=":04" /> |
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== Style == |
== Style == |
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| ⚫ | The general style of this painting is similar to Botticelli's ''[[Adoration of the Magi (Botticelli, 1475)|Adoration of the Magi'' of 1475]]'', which also shows great attention to details and extravagant use of colours.<ref name=":4">{{Cite book |last=Hills |first=Paul |title=Filippino Lippi: Beauty, Invention, and Intelligence |date=2020 |publisher=Brill |isbn=978-90-04-41610-9 |editor-last=Nuttall |editor-first=Paula |series=NIKI studies in Netherlandish-Italian Art History |volume=13 |location=Leiden Boston |pages=64–83 |chapter=Visible Rays in Filippino's London Adoration of the Magi |editor-last2=Nuttall |editor-first2=Geoffrey |editor-last3=Kwakkelstein |editor-first3=Michael}}</ref> Lippi also used gold paint to highlight the concept of heavenly light and golden rays.<ref name=":4" /> He uses bright colours and gold to grab and direct the viewer's attention.<ref name=":4" /> The bright golden rays serve the purpose of as narrative pointers, a sign of divine presence, and spiritual energy.<ref name=":4" /> |
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| ⚫ | Lippi arranged the scene in a pyramidal shape.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |last=Bradshaw |first=Marilyn |orig-date=2003 |title=Lippi, Filippino |url=https://www.oxfordartonline.com/groveart/display/10.1093/gao/9781884446054.001.0001/oao-9781884446054-e-90000370538 |access-date=2024-11-12 |website=Grove Art Online |date=2003 |doi=10.1093/oao/9781884446054.013.90000370538 |isbn=978-1-884446-05-4 }}</ref> He placed the Virgin and Child at the apex of the pyramid, with the other figures surrounding them.<ref name=":5" /> He painted a sense of movement, emotion, and physiognomic types that animates the entire scene.<ref name=":5" /> Lippi's use of a pyramidal structure is similar to that of both [[Leonardo da Vinci]] and [[Sandro Botticelli]], as well as other [[Italian Renaissance painting|Italian Renaissance painters]] at the time.<ref name=":5" /> Lippi is also note for his use of warm colours in his paintings.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |last=Goldner |first=George R. |title=Filippino Lippi (ca. 1457–1504) |url=https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/lipp/hd_lipp.htm# |access-date=2024-11-25 |website=The Met’s Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History |language=en}}</ref> These qualities are seen in his Adoration of the Magi, as well as other paintings by Lippi, including [[Tobias and the Angel (Filippino Lippi)|Tobias and the Angel]] and the Adoration of the Kings.<ref name=":6" /> Furthermore, Lippi creates an extremely vivid and naturalistic landscape in his artworks.<ref name=":6" /> |
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| ⚫ | The general style of this painting is similar to Botticelli's ''[[Adoration of the Magi (Botticelli, 1475)|Adoration of the Magi |
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| ⚫ | Lippi |
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[[File:Filippino_Lippi,_Adorazione_dei_Magi,_1496,_01_(cropped).jpg|left|thumb|Fig 3: Close up of African man and man with tiraz cloak]] |
[[File:Filippino_Lippi,_Adorazione_dei_Magi,_1496,_01_(cropped).jpg|left|thumb|Fig 3: Close up of African man and man with tiraz cloak]] |
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The man with the brown cloak, holding his right hand up, has [[tiraz]] artwork on his cloak.<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":125" /> The Medici family on the left wears a cloak that also resembles [[tiraz]] artwork.<ref name=":125" /> This style of art comes from [[Islam]]ic countries.<ref name=":125" /> The [[Adoration of the Magi (Gentile da Fabriano)|Adoration of the Magi]] by [[Gentile da Fabriano]] also takes advantage of using [[tiraz]] in his painting.<ref name=":125" /> Filippino including this in his painting shows how trade has connected different cultures, artistically and economically, as well as his knowledge and admiration of foreign artworks.<ref name=":04" /><ref name=":125" /> The dark man next to him is seen with a golden earring and [[pearl]] on his neck.<ref name=":04" /> Most commonly, the use of earring in Italian Renaissance artwork was to depict 'the other'.<ref name=":04" /><ref name=":125" /> [[Poggio Bracciolini]] has claimed [[Africa]]ns, namely [[Christianity in Ethiopia|Ethiopians]], decorated themselves with more [[Gemstone|gems]] and [[gold]] than Italians.<ref name=":04" /> Filippino Lippi must have used other paintings and heard Bracciolini's stories to include these details.<ref name=":04" /> A person looking at this painting would be immediately able to distinguish who is European, and who is not.<ref name=":04" /> |
The man with the brown cloak, holding his right hand up, has [[tiraz]] artwork on his cloak.<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":125" /> The Medici family on the left wears a cloak that also resembles [[tiraz]] artwork.<ref name=":125" /> This style of art comes from [[Islam]]ic countries.<ref name=":125" /> The [[Adoration of the Magi (Gentile da Fabriano)|Adoration of the Magi]] by [[Gentile da Fabriano]] also takes advantage of using [[tiraz]] in his painting.<ref name=":125" /> Filippino including this in his painting shows how trade has connected different cultures, artistically and economically, as well as his knowledge and admiration of foreign artworks.<ref name=":04" /><ref name=":125" /> The dark man next to him is seen with a golden earring and [[pearl]] on his neck.<ref name=":04" /> Most commonly, the use of earring in Italian Renaissance artwork was to depict 'the other'.<ref name=":04" /><ref name=":125" /> [[Poggio Bracciolini]] has claimed [[Africa]]ns, namely [[Christianity in Ethiopia|Ethiopians]], decorated themselves with more [[Gemstone|gems]] and [[gold]] than Italians.<ref name=":04" /> Filippino Lippi must have used other paintings and heard Bracciolini's stories to include these details.<ref name=":04" /> A person looking at this painting would be immediately able to distinguish who is European, and who is not.<ref name=":04" /> |
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== The artist == |
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| ⚫ | Filippino Lippi was a prominent Italian painter of the [[Quattrocento]] (15th century) and a mentor to many artists, including Sandro Botticelli.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Debenedetti |first=Ana |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J6E3EAAAQBAJ&dq=Filippo+Lippi+was+a+prominent+Italian+painter+of+the+Quattrocento+(15th+century)+and+a+mentor+to+many+artists,+including+Sandro+Botticelli&pg=PP1 |title=Botticelli: Artist and Designer |date=2024-11-12 |publisher=Reaktion Books |isbn=978-1-78914-437-6 |language=en}}</ref> He was born around 1457, in [[Prato]], [[Tuscany]], his father [[Fra Filippo Lippi]]; broken his clerical vows, and after Filippino's birth he received a [[Dispensation (Catholic canon law)|papal dispensation]] to marry [[Lucrezia Buti]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Fra Filippo Lippi (born about 1406; died 1469) {{!}} National Gallery, London |url=https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/artists/fra-filippo-lippi#:~:text=In%201456%20he%20abducted%20a,Lippi's%20workshop,%20as%20was%20Botticelli. |access-date=2024-12-11 |website=www.nationalgallery.org.uk}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ruda |first=Jeffrey |date=1984 |title=Style and Patronage in the 1440s: Two Altarpieces of the Coronation of the Virgin by Filippo Lippi |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/27653141 |journal=Mitteilungen des Kunsthistorischen Institutes in Florenz |volume=28 |issue=3 |pages=363–384 |jstor=27653141 |issn=0342-1201}}</ref> Filippino initially received training in his father's workshop. He returned to Florence sometime between 1491 and 1494.<ref name=":5" /> Initially training under his father [[Fra Filippo Lippi]], Filippino Lippi later apprenticed with [[Sandro Botticelli|Botticelli]] after his father's death.<ref name=":9" /> Renowned for his energetic and intricate compositions, warm color palettes, and naturalistic depictions of landscapes, Filippino Lippi contributed to numerous fresco cycles in the chapels of Florence and Rome and also created panel paintings.<ref name=":9" /> |
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The finished product was only acquired by [[Carlo de' Medici (cardinal)|Carlo de' Medici]] in 1529.<ref name=":9" /> The painting was then passed onto the [[Uffizi]] gallery.<ref name=":9" /> The painting remains in the [[Uffizi]] to this day.<ref name=":9" /> |
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== The Artist == |
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| ⚫ | Filippino Lippi was a prominent Italian painter of the Quattrocento (15th century) and a mentor to many artists, including Sandro Botticelli.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Debenedetti |first=Ana |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J6E3EAAAQBAJ&dq=Filippo+Lippi+was+a+prominent+Italian+painter+of+the+Quattrocento+(15th+century)+and+a+mentor+to+many+artists,+including+Sandro+Botticelli&pg=PP1 |title=Botticelli: Artist and Designer |date=2024-11-12 |publisher=Reaktion Books |isbn=978-1-78914-437-6 |language=en}}</ref> He was born around 1457, in [[Prato]], [[Tuscany]], his father [[Fra Filippo Lippi]]; broken his clerical vows, and after Filippino's birth he received a [[Dispensation (Catholic canon law)|papal dispensation]] to marry [[Lucrezia Buti]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Fra Filippo Lippi (born about 1406; died 1469) {{!}} National Gallery, London |url=https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/artists/fra-filippo-lippi#:~:text=In%201456%20he%20abducted%20a,Lippi's%20workshop,%20as%20was%20Botticelli. |access-date=2024-12-11 |website=www.nationalgallery.org.uk}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ruda |first=Jeffrey |date=1984 |title=Style and Patronage in the 1440s: Two Altarpieces of the Coronation of the Virgin by Filippo Lippi |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/27653141 |journal=Mitteilungen des Kunsthistorischen Institutes in Florenz |volume=28 |issue=3 |pages=363–384 |jstor=27653141 |issn=0342-1201}}</ref> Filippino initially received training in his father's workshop. He returned to Florence sometime between 1491 and 1494.<ref name=":5" /> Initially training under his father [[Fra Filippo Lippi]], Filippino Lippi later apprenticed with [[Sandro Botticelli|Botticelli]] after his father's death.<ref name=":9" /> Renowned for his energetic and intricate compositions, warm color palettes, and naturalistic depictions of landscapes, Filippino Lippi contributed to numerous fresco cycles in the chapels of Florence and Rome and also created panel paintings.<ref name=":9" /> |
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Works of this period include: ''[[Apparition of Christ to Madonna|Apparition of Christ to the Virgin]],'' ''Adoration of the Magi'',<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Fra Angelico, Fra Filippo Lippi, The Adoration of the Magi, c. 1440/1460 |url=https://www.nga.gov/collection/highlights/angelico-lippi-the-adoration-of-the-magi.html |access-date=2024-12-01 |website=www.nga.gov}}</ref> ''Sacrifice of Laocoön'',<ref name=":1" /> ''St. John Baptist and Maddalena'' (inspired by [[Luca Signorelli]]'s works).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Cavallini to Veronese - Italian Renaissance Art |url=https://cavallinitoveronese.co.uk/general/view_artist/47 |access-date=2024-12-06 |website=cavallinitoveronese.co.uk}}</ref> |
Works of this period include: ''[[Apparition of Christ to Madonna|Apparition of Christ to the Virgin]],'' ''Adoration of the Magi'',<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Fra Angelico, Fra Filippo Lippi, The Adoration of the Magi, c. 1440/1460 |url=https://www.nga.gov/collection/highlights/angelico-lippi-the-adoration-of-the-magi.html |access-date=2024-12-01 |website=www.nga.gov}}</ref> ''Sacrifice of Laocoön'',<ref name=":1" /> ''St. John Baptist and Maddalena'' (inspired by [[Luca Signorelli]]'s works).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Cavallini to Veronese - Italian Renaissance Art |url=https://cavallinitoveronese.co.uk/general/view_artist/47 |access-date=2024-12-06 |website=cavallinitoveronese.co.uk}}</ref> |
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On 18 April 1504 Filippino died |
On 18 April 1504 Filippino died at the age of 47; his cause of death is disputed.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-09-19 |title=15 Facts About Filippo Lippi: The Quattrocento Painter from Italy |url=https://www.thecollector.com/filippo-lippi-italian-renaissance-artist/ |access-date=2024-12-06 |website=TheCollector |language=en}}</ref> all the workshops in the city closed in his honor.<ref name=":6" /> |
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==References== |
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*[[Adoration of the Magi (Leonardo)|''Adoration of the Magi'' (Leonardo)]] |
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*[[Adoration of the Magi (Botticelli, 1475)|''Adoration of the Magi'' (Botticelli, 1475)]] |
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{{Commons category|Adoration of the Magi by Filippino Lippi}} |
{{Commons category|Adoration of the Magi by Filippino Lippi}} |
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==References== |
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{{reflist}} |
{{reflist}} |
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*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070928001302/http://www.artonline.it/opera.asp?IDOpera=1423 Page at artonline.it] {{in lang|it}} |
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070928001302/http://www.artonline.it/opera.asp?IDOpera=1423 Page at artonline.it] {{in lang|it}} |
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[[Category:Paintings by Filippino Lippi]] |
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[[Category:Paintings of the Adoration of the Magi|Lippi]] |
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[[Category:Paintings by Filippino Lippi in the Uffizi]] |
[[Category:Paintings by Filippino Lippi in the Uffizi]] |
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Latest revision as of 00:18, 25 December 2024
| Adoration of the Magi | |
|---|---|
 Inscription on back: Filippus me pinsit de Lipis florentinus addi 29 di marzo 1496 | |
| Artist | Filippino Lippi |
| Year | 1496 |
| Medium | Tempera grassa on wood |
| Dimensions | 258 cm × 243 cm (102 in × 96 in) |
| Location | The Uffizi |
| Accession | 1890 n. 1566 |
| Website | https://www.uffizi.it/en/artworks/adoration-of-the-magi-filippino-lippi |
The Adoration of the Magi is a panel painting in tempera by the Italian Renaissance painter Filippino Lippi, of the very common subject of the Adoration of the Magi, signed and dated 1496.[1] It is now in the Galleria degli Uffizi in Florence.[1]
The panel was painted for the monastery of San Donato in Scopeto (San Donato in Scopeto), as a substitution for the one commissioned in 1481 from Leonardo da Vinci, who left it unfinished. In 1529 it was acquired by Cardinal Carlo de' Medici and in 1666 it became part of the Uffizi collection, left to the city by the last of the Medicis.[1]
Filippino Lippi followed Leonardo's setting, in particular in the central part of the work. Much of its inspiration was clearly derived from Botticelli's Adoration of the Magi, also in the Uffizi: this is evident in the disposition of the characters on the two sides, with the Holy Family portrayed in the centre under. Similarly to Botticelli's work, Filippino also portrayed numerous members of the Medici cadet line, who had adhered to the Savonarolian Republic in the period in which the work was executed. On the left, kneeling in a luxurious, fur-lined yellow robe and holding an astrolabe, is Pierfrancesco de' Medici, who had died 20 years before.[1][2][3] Behind him, standing, are his two sons Giovanni, holding a goblet, and Lorenzo, from whom a page is removing a crown.
The general style is that of Filippino's late career, characterized by a greater care to details and by a nervous rhythm in the forms, influenced by the knowledge of foreign painting schools (as also in the landscape of the background). The painting is set in a country landscape, in front of a stable over which the Star of Bethlehem, that guided the Three Magi, is shining. In the background, there are scenes of their journey, from the sighting of the star to their passage via Herod's palace.[2]
Patron and commission
[edit]The painting is signed and dated ("Filippus me pinsit de Lipis florentinus addi 29 di marzo 1496"). Originally, the subject was commissioned by the monks of the monastery of San Donato in Scopeto in Florence, and begun by Leonardo da Vinci in 1481.[2] The Augustinian monks at the church of San Donato in Scopeto wanted Leonardo to paint a panel for the high altar in the church.[2] In 1481, Leonardo abandoned his work on the painting, because he was called to the court of Ludovico Sforza in Milan.[2] Leonardo's abandoned work survives today at the Uffizi, but not in the best shape or form.[2] The Augustinian monks still wanted the painting for their church and they waited for Leonardo's return.[2] Eventually they decided to find another artist to do the job, and chose Filippino Lippi.[1][2] This is not the first time that Leonardo and Filippino exchanged works.[1] For example, in the 1480s Leonardo had to give over the designing of the altarpiece for the Palazzo della Signoria to Filippino Lippi, who completed the artwork in 1486.[1][4]
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The reason for Leonardo's abandonment of the Signoria altarpiece remains unclear. Later on in 1505 Leonardo abandoned another artwork, a wall painting of the Battle of Anghiari, in the Palazzo della Signoria, where the Gonfaloniere of Justice, Piero Soderini, claims that Leonardo may have been sent to Milan by the request of Charles d'Amboise and King Louis XII.[4] Although it is unclear why Leonardo abandoned the commission of the Adoration of the Magi, it would be reasonable to assume that he had been called away to another job, resulting in him abandoning his work in the palazzo.[5][4] Based off their prior interactions, Leonardo instructed his father to give drafts of the Adoration to Filippino.[5] Filippino Lippi started working on the painting soon after receiving the commission to paint the Adoration of the Magi.[1] He is believed to have received the commission in the early 1494, but began painting in November.[6]
Filippino's father, Filippo Lippi, also created a version of the Adoration of the Magi,[7][8] as had most successful painters of religious subject in the period.
Description and subject
[edit]The figures surrounding the Virgin represent the three Biblical Magi and their entourages, but some are believed to be donor portraits depicting members of the Medici family.[1][2] The Holy Family is located in the centre of the painting, flanked by Medici family members.[1] The three Magi kneel in the foreground.[1][2] In order to pay homage to Pierfrancesco de' Medici, and his sons, the Augustinian monks of San Donato in Scopeto commissioned a painting from Leonardo da Vinci in 1481 (discussed in above section, see: Patron and Commission).[2] Although Leonardo abandoned his work, the Augustinian monks required Filippino Lippi to include the same figures.[2]
Lippi included portraits of three members of the Medici family.[3] For instance, in the bottom left corner of the painting there is a man wearing a golden cloak, lined with fur.[1][2] As he kneels before the Christ-child, he is seen holding a large golden astrolabe.[3] Several scholars have suggested that this figure may the represent Melchior the oldest of the Magi, as a portrait of Pierfrancesco de' Medici, though the item he holds is not the typical gift that the Magi present to the Christ-Child, gold.[1][3][6] Bleattler does not go on to discuss any portrait identity of the remaining two Magi in the painting,[3] or other figures.
Above Pierfrancesco in the golden cloak, there are two male figures who Jonathan K. Nelson believes represent Pierfrancesco's sons, Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de' Medici (1463–1503), shown being crowned and serves as the youngest of the Magi, Caspar, and his brother, Giovanni de' Medici (1467–1498), serves as a page.[1][2] Giovanni, together with his older brother, holds a large gold and silver vessel lidded goblet, to give to baby Jesus.[1][2][6] With this interpretation, one Magi, the middle one, remains unaccounted for still.[6] He may be either of the two remaining men kneeling in the foreground.[6]
Based on the figures represented, it makes more sense that the male figure kneeling before the Christi-child (in a black clock with a blue scarf) is presumably the oldest Magi, Melchoir (notice how he has already given his gift and Jesus is seen holding it).[1] If this is the case, perhaps then Pierfrancesco would be the middle aged magus, Balthazar.[3][6] The youngest Magus, Caspar, could either be the figure in red, Lorenzo, or perhaps, is the man kneeling on the right, who is extending his gift to the Holy Family.[9] Traditionally, the three magi are depicted kneeling in artwork, which makes this a valid and logical assumption for labeling the Magi.[9]
Christian Ethiopians and ideas of the Orient
[edit]During Filippino Lippi's life, new artwork increasingly contained elements of the Orient.[6][9] At the of the year 1441 during the Council of Florence, four Ethiopian monks were present, who attested that their ruler controlled a Christian kingdom in Ethiopia larger than all of Europe.[6] The Europeans were intrigued by this large Christian kingdom and drew connections with their prior knowledge of the mythical figure of Prester John.[6] This motivated European artists, especially those of the Italian Renaissance, to increasingly include dark skinned figures in kings in the Adoration of the Magi.[6][9] This is seen when examining the multitude of scenes of the Adoration of the Magi that were painted in this period.[9] Many of the paintings include oriental carpets and halos with pseudo-Arabic script.[9] Contrary to this popular movement, Lippi did not include oriental objects like carpets in his painting of the Adoration of the Magi.[9] However, Lippi included Muslim men who are seen wearing turbans on the sides of the painting.[9]
Unlike some other depictions of The Adoration of the Magi in Italian Renaissance painting where one of the Magi, Balthazar was sometimes depicted with dark skin, Filippino Lippi shows all three of the Magi as white men.[2] However, he includes one African in the bottom right corner of the painting; this figure is not a king or attendant.[2][6] Scholars have suggested that this Black man is supposed to symbolize the first of the gentiles who chose Christianity as their religion.[6] The number of Africans who accepted Christ is discussed by Saint Augustine's epiphany sermons.[6] Although it is difficult to pinpoint the reason as to why Lippi chose to do this, the trend is seen in similar Italian Renaissance art during the 1490s where an increasing amount of Africans, specifically Ethiopian Christins are included into the biblical scene of the Adoration of the Magi, in order to show that dark skinned people were also supporters of Christ.[6] This is contrary to the standard depiction of dark skinned individuals as Balthazar the magus, servants, or enslaved peoples.[6]
Style
[edit].jpg)
The general style of this painting is similar to Botticelli's Adoration of the Magi of 1475, which also shows great attention to details and extravagant use of colours.[10] Lippi also used gold paint to highlight the concept of heavenly light and golden rays.[10] He uses bright colours and gold to grab and direct the viewer's attention.[10] The bright golden rays serve the purpose of as narrative pointers, a sign of divine presence, and spiritual energy.[10]
Lippi arranged the scene in a pyramidal shape.[11] He placed the Virgin and Child at the apex of the pyramid, with the other figures surrounding them.[11] He painted a sense of movement, emotion, and physiognomic types that animates the entire scene.[11] Lippi's use of a pyramidal structure is similar to that of both Leonardo da Vinci and Sandro Botticelli, as well as other Italian Renaissance painters at the time.[11] Lippi is also note for his use of warm colours in his paintings.[12] These qualities are seen in his Adoration of the Magi, as well as other paintings by Lippi, including Tobias and the Angel and the Adoration of the Kings.[12] Furthermore, Lippi creates an extremely vivid and naturalistic landscape in his artworks.[12]
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The man with the brown cloak, holding his right hand up, has tiraz artwork on his cloak.[1][9] The Medici family on the left wears a cloak that also resembles tiraz artwork.[9] This style of art comes from Islamic countries.[9] The Adoration of the Magi by Gentile da Fabriano also takes advantage of using tiraz in his painting.[9] Filippino including this in his painting shows how trade has connected different cultures, artistically and economically, as well as his knowledge and admiration of foreign artworks.[6][9] The dark man next to him is seen with a golden earring and pearl on his neck.[6] Most commonly, the use of earring in Italian Renaissance artwork was to depict 'the other'.[6][9] Poggio Bracciolini has claimed Africans, namely Ethiopians, decorated themselves with more gems and gold than Italians.[6] Filippino Lippi must have used other paintings and heard Bracciolini's stories to include these details.[6] A person looking at this painting would be immediately able to distinguish who is European, and who is not.[6]
The artist
[edit]Filippino Lippi was a prominent Italian painter of the Quattrocento (15th century) and a mentor to many artists, including Sandro Botticelli.[13] He was born around 1457, in Prato, Tuscany, his father Fra Filippo Lippi; broken his clerical vows, and after Filippino's birth he received a papal dispensation to marry Lucrezia Buti.[14][15] Filippino initially received training in his father's workshop. He returned to Florence sometime between 1491 and 1494.[11] Initially training under his father Fra Filippo Lippi, Filippino Lippi later apprenticed with Botticelli after his father's death.[1] Renowned for his energetic and intricate compositions, warm color palettes, and naturalistic depictions of landscapes, Filippino Lippi contributed to numerous fresco cycles in the chapels of Florence and Rome and also created panel paintings.[1]
Works of this period include: Apparition of Christ to the Virgin, Adoration of the Magi,[16] Sacrifice of Laocoön,[16] St. John Baptist and Maddalena (inspired by Luca Signorelli's works).[17]
On 18 April 1504 Filippino died at the age of 47; his cause of death is disputed.[18] all the workshops in the city closed in his honor.[12]
References
[edit]
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s "Adoration of the Magi by Filippino Lippi". Uffizi Galleries. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Parenti, Daniela. "Adoration of the Magi by Leonardo da Vinci". Uffizi Galleries. Retrieved 2024-11-12.
- ^ a b c d e f Bleattler, Henry R. (2001). Adoration of the Medici: Fifteenth Century Construction of a Princely Identity through the Expropriation of Magian Iconography. Ph.D. Dissertation The Florida State University. pp. 234–235, figs. 6.6, 6.7.
- ^ a b c Alessandro, Vezzosi; Sabato, Agnese; Frost, Catherine. "Palazzo Vecchio (formerly Palazzo della Signoria)". Museo Galileo. Retrieved 2024-11-12.
- ^ a b Feinberg, Larry J. (2011). "The Adoration and Leonardo's Military Interests". The Young Leonardo. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 139–144. ISBN 978-1-107-68822-3.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u Nelson, Jonathan K. (2021-02-16). "Ethiopian Christians on the Margins: Symbolic Blackness in Filippino Lippi's Adoration of the Magi and Miracle of St Philip". Renaissance Studies. 35 (5): 857–879. doi:10.1111/rest.12722. ISSN 0269-1213.
- ^ "The Adoration of the Magi". www.nga.gov. Retrieved 2024-12-03.
- ^ Stebbins, Madeleine. "The Adoration of the Magi". St. Paul Center. Retrieved 2024-12-03.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Christian, Kathleen R.; Clark, Leah (2017). European Art and the Wider World, 1350–1550. Manchester University Press. ISBN 978-1-5261-2290-2. OCLC 1050039882.
- ^ a b c d Hills, Paul (2020). "Visible Rays in Filippino's London Adoration of the Magi". In Nuttall, Paula; Nuttall, Geoffrey; Kwakkelstein, Michael (eds.). Filippino Lippi: Beauty, Invention, and Intelligence. NIKI studies in Netherlandish-Italian Art History. Vol. 13. Leiden Boston: Brill. pp. 64–83. ISBN 978-90-04-41610-9.
- ^ a b c d e Bradshaw, Marilyn (2003) [2003]. "Lippi, Filippino". Grove Art Online. doi:10.1093/oao/9781884446054.013.90000370538. ISBN 978-1-884446-05-4. Retrieved 2024-11-12.
- ^ a b c d Goldner, George R. "Filippino Lippi (ca. 1457–1504)". The Met’s Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. Retrieved 2024-11-25.
- ^ Debenedetti, Ana (2024-11-12). Botticelli: Artist and Designer. Reaktion Books. ISBN 978-1-78914-437-6.
- ^ "Fra Filippo Lippi (born about 1406; died 1469) | National Gallery, London". www.nationalgallery.org.uk. Retrieved 2024-12-11.
- ^ Ruda, Jeffrey (1984). "Style and Patronage in the 1440s: Two Altarpieces of the Coronation of the Virgin by Filippo Lippi". Mitteilungen des Kunsthistorischen Institutes in Florenz. 28 (3): 363–384. ISSN 0342-1201. JSTOR 27653141.
- ^ a b "Fra Angelico, Fra Filippo Lippi, The Adoration of the Magi, c. 1440/1460". www.nga.gov. Retrieved 2024-12-01.
- ^ "Cavallini to Veronese - Italian Renaissance Art". cavallinitoveronese.co.uk. Retrieved 2024-12-06.
- ^ "15 Facts About Filippo Lippi: The Quattrocento Painter from Italy". TheCollector. 2020-09-19. Retrieved 2024-12-06.
- Page at artonline.it (in Italian)
- Filippino Lippi - Adoration of the Magi at the Uffizi