Copies of Ghiberti reliefs. Lorenzo Ghiberti sculpture reliefs

Isaac Newton's work was complex - he worked simultaneously in several fields of knowledge. An important stage in Newton's work was his mathematics, which made it possible to improve the calculation system within the framework of others. Newton's important discovery was the fundamental theorem of analysis. It made it possible to prove that differential calculus is the inverse of integral calculus and vice versa. Important role Newton's discovery of the possibility of binomial expansion of numbers also played a role in the development of algebra. Newton’s method of extracting roots from equations also played an important practical role, which greatly simplified such calculations.

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Newton's laws became the basis of classical mechanics.

But Newton's most famous discovery was the law universal gravity. He was also able to prove that gravitational forces extend not only to terrestrial forces, but also to celestial bodies. These laws were described in 1687 after Newton's publication on the use of mathematical methods V .

Newton's law of gravitation became the first of numerous theories of gravity that subsequently emerged.

Optics

Newton devoted a lot of time to such a branch of physics as optics. He is as important as the spectral decomposition of colors - with the help of a lens he learned to refract White light for other colors. Thanks to Newton, knowledge in optics was systematized. He created the most important device - a reflecting telescope, which improved the quality of observations.

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When studying Newton's laws at school, some students memorize only their theoretical data and formulas, but are absolutely not interested in how great the man who did such a thing was. important discoveries. Newton made a huge contribution to the development of man's ideas about the world around him in the 18th century.

Isaac Newton is a famous English mathematician and physicist. The great scientist was born on January 4, 1643 according to the Gregorian calendar (December 25, 1642 according to the Julian calendar) in small Woolsthorpe in England.

Isaac Newton is famous for creating theoretical basis astronomy and mechanics. His achievements include the invention of the reflecting telescope, the discovery of the law of universal gravitation, and the writing of extremely important research work, as well as the development of integral and differential calculus. True, the last work was done by Newton together with another famous scientist, Leibniz. Isaac Newton is considered the founder of "classical physics".

The great scientist came from a farming family. Little Isaac studied first at Grantham School, then at Trinity College, Cambridge University. After graduation, the future scientist was awarded a bachelor's degree.

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Isaac Newton was buried in Westminster Abbey. The date of death of the scientist is determined as March 31, 1727 according to the Gregorian calendar (March 20, 1727 - Julian style).

Dr. Richard W. Hamming, in his lecture “You and Your Discoveries,” explained how to make a great discovery. He emphasized that any average person is capable of this. The main thing is to correctly apply the efforts of your mind. Hamming summarized his experience at Bell Labs, where he worked side by side with the great scientists of our time.

Instructions

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In 1400 he went to Pesaro, where he painted frescoes at the court of the ruler, but quickly returned to Florence, having learned about an announced competition to create bronze doors for the baptistery of the Florence Cathedral (1401).

GIBERTI, LORENZO (Ghiberti, Lorenzo) (c. 1378–1455), Italian artist and art historian, one of the founders of Renaissance sculpture.

Born in Pelago near Florence ca. 1378; was brought up in Florence, in the family of his stepfather, goldsmith Bartolo di Michele (perhaps Bartolo was his real father

om Ghiberti, the artist himself left conflicting information about this). Learned jewelry making skills from Bartolo; He also learned painting (however, neither his jewelry nor his paintings have reached us).

In 1400 he went to Pesaro, where he painted frescoes at the court of the ruler, but quickly returned to Flo

Rence, having learned about the announced competition to create bronze doors for the baptistery of the Florence Cathedral (1401). IN next year won the competition for the second (northern) doors (the first, southern ones, were executed by Andrea Pisano back in the 14th century), presenting to the commission a bronze relief of Zhertvoprino

The Sewing of Abraham (National Museum, Florence). Almost all of his other works are also executed in bronze. The doors, on which the young (but quickly gained authority thanks to this order) artist worked in 1403–1424, are divided into 28 fields, where scenes from the New Testament are presented, as well as

evangelists and church fathers. Standing out for their subtle, truly jewelry-like grace, these compositions, with their ornate lines, wavy dynamics of poses and folds of clothing, complex frames in the form of quadrifolia, fully correspond to the ideals of late Gothic (or “international style”), however, here too

is the master's keen interest in classical antiquity.

Even more significant are the other, third (eastern) doors of the baptistery (1425–1452), the so-called. heavenly (“They are so beautiful that they deserve to become the doors of heaven,” Michelangelo said about them). Their pictorial fields, with a much simpler and stricter,

rectangular frame, contain Old Testament scenes, executed in gradual gradations of relief from high to very low. The rich figurative and floral decoration of the doors also includes a self-portrait of Ghiberti. Still dynamic, but much more harmoniously balanced, these

x reliefs, even more multi-figured and compositionally complex, but consistently subordinate to the laws of linear perspective, makes them full-fledged Renaissance works.

Other works by Ghiberti include statues of John the Baptist (1412–1416), Matthew the Apostle (1419–1422) and St. Stephen (1425–

1428) for the church of Orsanmichele, the tombstone of Leonardo Dati in the church of Santa Maria Novella (1423–1427), the reliquary of St. Zenobius in the cathedral (1430s; all in Florence), as well as two reliefs of the baptismal font of the baptistery of the Siena Cathedral (1417–1429). Several vitras are also attributed to him

from the Florence Cathedral; The most reliable among them is a stained glass window with a scene of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary (c. 1425). Gothic and Renaissance features in all these works they complement each other quite expressively.

Around 1447 the master completed Commentarii (Notes), where he outlined the history of ancient art

art (according to Pliny the Elder and other ancient authors), and also collected information on optics, perspective and artistic craft from medieval treatises. The most interesting is the second part of the Notes, about Italian art of the 13th–15th centuries. (up to the work of Ghiberti himself), which is essentially the first large

Lorenzo Ghiberti - Italian sculptor, jeweler, decorator and art historian, bright representative Early Renaissance and one of the greatest masters of relief.

His father was the son of a notary, his mother was a peasant woman. Young Lorenzo received his artistic education in the jewelry workshop of his stepfather, a goldsmith. Bartolo di Michele(perhaps this Bartoluccio was Ghiberti’s real father; the artist himself left conflicting information about this). Lorenzo learned jewelry making skills from Bartoluccio and also learned painting (however, neither his jewelry nor his paintings have survived to this day).

In 1401, at the age of 21, he took part in a competition for reliefs of bronze doors for the baptistery in Florence. Ghiberti won the competition, beating his closest competitors - Donatello And Brunelleschi. Competition relief Ghiberti, depicting the sacrifice of Isaac (in the Bible this story is called the Sacrifice of Abraham), is now in National Museum Bargello, in Florence.

From 1401 to 1424 (that is, more than 20 years) Ghiberti worked on the doors north entrance to the baptistery. The doors were designed to be worthy of the work previously completed Andrea Pisano(this sculptor completed work on the creation in 1330 south doors baptistery). Reliefs Ghiberti depict scenes from the life of Jesus and also represent the four evangelists and the Father of the Church. Over the years he also completed several impressive sculptures for the façade Church of Orsanmichele in Florence: Saint John the Baptist, Saint Matthew and Saint Stephen.

When the master turned 43 years old, he received an order from the Florentine Signoria (that was the name of the city government body of Florence) to create east entrance baptistery The sculptor devoted approximately 23 years to this work, during which time his workshop became one of the main centers of Florentine creative activity. It is known that he worked as an assistant in his workshop Donatello, in the future, a great reformer of Italian sculpture.

Received more freedom when making the doors of the eastern entrance. The doors have ten square panels. New system perspective was masterfully used by Ghiberti in the architectural setting of three reliefs: Isaac, Joseph, Solomon. WITH light hand Michelangelo, the Florentines proudly call this work of his "The Gates of Heaven" Art historians rightly consider this gate a work as significant for the Quattrocento as painting Masaccio or buildings Brunelleschi.

Subsequently, five of the ten panels of the East Gate were torn off in the 1966 flood and later restored using replicas from San Francisco. To protect the remaining original parts from contamination, they have been replaced exact copies in 1990.

IN last years of his life he wrote a book “Comments” in 3 volumes, notes on Italian art. This book contains analysis early art Italy and Ghiberti's own works. Ghiberti dedicated volume one to antiquity, in which he retold the story ancient art according to Pliny. The second volume is the most interesting, it is dedicated to the art of the Middle Ages. But the main thing was that Ghiberti was the first to turn to the biographies of artists in his work.
Almost art history as a science was born by Lorenzo Ghiberti. He concluded his treatise with an autobiography.

During his lifetime he experienced recognition from his contemporaries and fame. He is rightfully considered one of brilliant masters Renaissance. He died just 3 years after completing work on "The Gates of Heaven" He was buried in the floor of the Basilica of Santa Croce (that is, the Holy Cross), in that church where many works of art are kept and where the most famous inhabitants of Florence found their rest.

Click on the sculpture thumbnail, look at the original, read the text under the original picture. Scroll through the gallery using the link Further under the upper right corner of the original painting. If necessary, go back using the link Back at the top left corner.
For convenience, open the gallery in full screen by clicking the key F11.

Baptistery of San Giovanni (Florence)

He was fascinated by the theoretical problems of art. In 1445 Ghiberti is one of the most educated people of his time - began work on " Comments" There are three of them in total, and not a single essay is finished. The first "Commentary", dedicated to the history of ancient art, is clearly unsuccessful. The third “Commentary” is also not of particular interest. But the second one, completed in 1447-1448, is of exceptional importance. and dedicated to history Italian art. This Commentary concludes with Ghiberti's detailed autobiography, the first known autobiography of a Renaissance artist.

A crater on Mercury is named after Ghiberti.

Baptistery in Florence

Ghiberti's father was the son of a notary, his mother was a peasant woman. She left her husband, moved to Florence and here she met the jeweler Bartolo di Michele detto Bartoluccio, in whose workshop the young Ghiberti received art education. Brunelleschi and Donatello also began their activities in jewelry, but then they decisively broke with its traditions. Ghiberti, on the other hand, remained a goldsmith throughout his life, even when he carried out large monumental commissions. He most of all valued the elegance of finely finished form, the smooth flow of lines, and the harmony of a carefully weighed composition. It is not for nothing that in his “Comments” he so glorifies the Cologne master Gusmin (died ca. 1420), who worked for Louis II of Anjou, brother of the French king Charles V, Jean of Berry and Philip of Burgundy358. Ghiberti saw Gusmin's jewelry and was delighted with its exquisite craftsmanship. Around 1400, Ghiberti apparently became acquainted with the work of French jewelers of the 70-90s of the 14th century, which largely determined the style of his competition relief from 1402.

After the death of his stepfather in 1422, Ghiberti headed a large workshop specializing in bronze casting. Donatello, Ciuffagni, Michelozzo, Paolo Uccello, Masolino passed through it. It was one of the largest artistic centers in Florence, sensitive to changing tastes. An excellent organizer, Ghiberti managed to organize the work in such a way that the individual handwriting of his assistants was completely dissolved in the general style.

Ghiberti's main customers were the Signoria and the richest guilds (Kalimala, Seta, Cambio). Connected with his hometown by thousands of threads, Ghiberti rarely left it (short trips to Pesaro, Venice, Siena, Pisa, two visits to Rome in 1416 (?) and c. 1429). He was lucky in life, his works were invariably liked by customers; although he was not a professional architect, he for a long time were involved in the construction of the dome of the Florence Cathedral. He could write with satisfaction in his Commentaries: “There are few significant things done on our land that were not drawn or installed by my hand.”359 All this led to Ghiberti's rapid enrichment. Unlike the unmercenary Donatello, he became a rich man who bought up plots of land and amassed a first-class collection of antiques360. Having become close to humanist circles in the 20s and 30s, Ghiberti constantly exchanged ideas with them and borrowed a lot from their vocabulary. But he never became a learned humanist, even when, around 1447, he began writing three books of his “Commentarii”, where he outlined the history of ancient art, Italian art of the 13th-14th centuries and prepared quotation material from Vitruvius, Alhazen, Avicenna, Averroes, Vitelo, Pekama and Bacon for a theoretical essay361. As a scientist, Ghiberti remained an amateur, although he would never have agreed with this. He did not know Greek language(knew only Latin) and in the field of mathematics, geometry, optics and mechanics was infinitely inferior to Brunelleschi. His element was the rich artistic experience, and not its theoretical generalization. Intelligent, lively and judicious, he was unusually receptive to the most diverse trends of his time, striving to fuse them together in a very special “Ghibertian” style. It happily combined the main features of the Florentine character.

It is significant that Ghiberti himself most of all valued himself as a jeweler and creator of picturesque relief. He writes almost nothing about his statues. But in more detail informs about his jewelry, not forgetting to mention the nature of the material used, its weight, its price, the selection of precious stones that were his weakness, the degree of finesse of the work. Ghiberti transferred all these skills of a jeweler into monumental plastic, which left a very special stamp on it.

The earliest undisputed work by Ghiberti is a competition relief from 1402. We have already talked about him (pp. 42-43) - When Ghiberti worked on him, he was only twenty-four years old. The early maturity of the master is striking362. As R. Krautheimer363 convincingly showed, Ghiberti in this relief reveals a thorough acquaintance with Franco-Burgundian jewelry of the 70-90s of the 14th century - the finest detailing of faces with pointed graceful features, emphasizing the bones, smooth, linear type, as if faceted folds. Only Ghiberti’s figures are more slender, they are more freely deployed in space, and there is more perceptibility in them. Ghiberti was inspired not only by the local post-Gothic traditions, but also used the experience of French jewelers, who were famous throughout the world for the exceptional care in making their miniature products.

Simultaneously with the work on the second doors of the baptistery, Ghiberti cast two bronze statues for Or San Michele - John the Baptist (1412-1416) and the Apostle Matthew (1419-1422). Their customers were the rich workshops of Kalimala and Cambio. The first of the statues is a typical example international gothic, captured in its orbit powerful impact and Florence, as evidenced, in particular, by works by Lorenzo Monaco after 1404 (cf. t. g, pp. 204-210), which are a convincing stylistic parallel to the works of Ghiberti from the end of the first decade - the first half of the second. The figure of John stands in a niche of Gothic form, in size it surpasses all earlier statues cast in bronze. The weight of the body rests on the left leg, the right leg is slightly set back. But the motive of the movement is almost not revealed, since the figure, devoid of contrapposto, seems to be unfolded on a plane, moreover, it is hidden behind the robe. The latter breaks up into smooth parabolic folds - a favorite motif of late Gothic sculptors. All forms are made with jewelry care, this is especially reflected in the finishing of the hair and the hair shirt visible from under the cloak. The inexpressive face has a shade of that impersonality that Nanni and Donatello were the first to overcome. Ghibertius's statue of John the Baptist is perceived as a historical anachronism, especially when one remembers that at the time of its creation Nanni's Philip and Donatello's Marcus were already completed.

We find the same passion for the melodic flow of lines in the statue of St. Stephen, executed between 1425-1429 for the same Or San Michele, commissioned by the powerful workshop of Lana. This somewhat limp statue clearly demonstrates how difficult it was for Ghiberti to break with the “soft style”, even after he paid tribute to the new direction. And that he looked closely at him is shown by an earlier statue of the Apostle Matthew (1419-1422). Here all forms, including the shape of the niche, are simplified, the figure gains monumentality, becomes larger in size and more stable, right leg slightly set back, while the right shoulder is slightly advanced; the pose was inspired by the statues of Roman orators and poets, the arms and legs became stronger, the shoulders became straighter, the drapery more rounded and full. Ghiberti seemed to realize that Donatello’s “Marcus” and “John” are already facts of the past and that they cannot be ignored. However, he does not abandon his favorite linearity of folds and that very special finishing of the form, which in this monumental figure reveals the hand of a jeweler who is accustomed to ziselize bronze as if he were dealing with gold. And in the statue of Matthew, the face lacks “character”, which makes it much inferior to the powerful images of Donatello.

Work on the statues of John the Baptist and Matthew coincided with work on one of Ghiberti's main works - the second doors of the Florentine Baptistery, on which he worked with a large staff of assistants between 1404 and 1424. The creative process proceeded very slowly (on average three reliefs were completed per year). By 1415 most of reliefs were cast, but their finishing took nine years (I4I5-I424) - The figures and background were made separately and only then joined. This method of work contradicted the basic principles of pictorial relief and greatly delayed its development. In the second doors we find only the beginnings of a picturesque relief (and then only in the most recent scenes), but in general here general character The relief continues the tradition of Andrea Pisano. Only in the third door will the picturesque relief receive a classical form of expression.

At first, it was planned to place scenes from the Old Testament on the second doors, but this idea was abandoned no later than 1404, when they decided to focus on the New Testament cycle. Scenes should be "read" from left to right within each register and then move on to the register above. This arrangement symbolized the ascent through the steps of redemption. The final scenes of the Christological cycle are placed in the uppermost register. The story begins with the Annunciation and ends with the Descent of St. spirit." The two lower registers feature the seated evangelists and the four church fathers (Augustine, Jerome, Gregory the Great, and Ambrose). All the figures, as well as the heads of the prophets and sibyls inserted into the frame, were gilded, clearly standing out against the neutral background of bronze. On the left door leaf, Ghiberti, proud of his work, gave a self-portrait in the image of one of the prophets. The frames of each of the reliefs and the door portal are richly decorated with plant motifs dating back to French traditions.

When Ghiberti was working on the reliefs of the second doors of the baptistery, “international Gothic” was flourishing in Florence and the new Renaissance art was just taking its first steps. Both in his statue of John the Baptist and in the reliefs of the second doors, Ghiberti is a convinced adherent of the Gothic understanding of form. But evolution is taking place, albeit slowly, without sudden leaps, without revolutionary innovations. The early group of reliefs (“Annunciation”, “Adoration of the Magi”, “Baptism”, “Prayer of the Cup”), which appeared around 1404-1407, is in many ways similar to the style of the competition relief. The same graceful figures, the same melodic, smooth folds. Only the draperies became a little softer and the linear cutting of the form became somewhat stronger. Then we observe the growth of the features of “international Gothic”, reflected, as in Lorenzo Monaco, in a pronounced attraction to curvilinear, curved lines that neutralize the volume of figures (“Twelve-year-old Christ in the Temple”, “Transfiguration”, “Crucifixion”, etc.) . The work was carried out especially intensively between 1413 and 1416, when two thirds of all reliefs were completed. Apparently, the last scenes to be composed were “The Betrayal of Judas,” “The Procession to Golgotha,” “The Flagellation of Christ,” “The Descent of St. spirit." Here the clothes are better coordinated with the motive of the figures’ movement, the number of plans increases, the most distant of which is given in low relief, paving the way for the artistic solutions of the third doors. Most of the heads of the prophets were completed after 1415. Among these heads there are many inspired antique samples- Roman sarcophagi and Roman portraits (in particular, portraits of Socrates and Caesar). These are Ghiberti's first timid steps to assimilate the ancient heritage. He does this very tactfully, subordinating the ancient details to his plan. From the ancient heritage he takes only what suits him and what does not violate the stylistic structure of his own forms.

The reliefs of the second doors, like Andrea Pisano's first doors, are inscribed in a very complex and capricious form of Gothic quadrifolia, in which four arcs alternate with four triangles. It is extremely difficult to successfully fill such a field with figures, and Ghiberti coped with this task brilliantly. His compositions are distinguished by amazing variety and elasticity, although he uses very little low relief and his architectural scenes are usually given in the same high relief. Ghiberti builds his compositions in such a way that they curved lines echo the smooth arcs of the frame, and the straight lines echo the outlines of sharp triangles. To do this, he uses the inclinations of the figures, their bends, the rounding folds of their draperies, and the verticals of the architectural scenes. There seems to be not a single detail or accessory that he would not play with great art in his compositions, always carefully weighed. And if some compositions suffer from overload, then this depended on the nature of the theme itself, and not on the individual desire of the artist. He himself undoubtedly preferred compositions with a small number of figures that did not overload the quadrifolium field. In Ghiberti's reliefs, as in the Trecentist paintings, there remains much that is unclear and ambiguous in the relationships of figures, objects and scenes in space. There are no clear spatial structures so characteristic of Renaissance reliefs and paintings. But even within the confines of such a pictorial system, the master manages to achieve a certain clarity and visibility. The figures of the evangelists and church fathers, given in lower relief, are especially good. Here the master’s remarkable compositional gift for unfolding a figure on a plane, without impoverishing the motive of movement, is fully revealed. In addition, these figures, like those located below, are distinguished by a special fineness of decoration, to which the jeweler Ghiberti always attached exceptional importance.

The second doors of the baptistery gravitate more towards the artistic culture of the Trecento than to the Renaissance movement that was just beginning to take shape. And Ghiberti himself, with his observant and lively mind, should have understood this well. Brunelleschi's early buildings, the first realistic statues of Nanni and Donatello, the discovery and geometric justification of perspective by Filippo (c. 1425), the appearance in Florence of Alberti, who easily assimilated Brunelleschi's new ideas, which he summarized in a treatise on painting completed in 1436, rapid successes Florentine humanism, the fascination of humanistic circles with ancient art, the creation by Donatello around 1417 of the first pictorial relief - all this could not help but give Ghiberti the idea of ​​the need to somehow respond to these innovations, but to respond in such a way as not to lose his individuality and not sacrifice his hobbies of his youth. This was a difficult task that could give rise to a conflict situation. But not for such an integral and balanced nature as Ghiberti. He mastered it as a result of diligent, leisurely work, as a result of lively communication with people of a new type, as a result of a happy natural gift for merging into a harmonious whole the most contradictory elements that for anyone else would have been incompatible. This reflected the strong character of Ghiberti, who from a young age had his own firmly established aesthetic ideals.

Very interesting are two reliefs made by Ghiberti for the font of the Siena Baptistery. The first relief (“John the Baptist before Herod”) was started around 1420 and completed by 1427; the master began the second relief (“Baptism”), completed by the same date, a little later - around 1424. At this time, an extremely important turning point occurred in the development of the Hibertiian pictorial relief. The scene “John the Baptist before Herod” is, in principle, not much different from the scene of the second doors of the baptistery (“Christ before Pilate”), which is similar in general compositional structure. The same figures in high relief, the same podium placed at an angle. Only the architectural backdrop has become more complicated, in which the background is in low relief. The relief depicting the “Baptism” was designed in a completely different way. Here the figures, having lost their volumetric-statuary character, are already inseparable from the background against which clouds and angels are depicted in the rilievo schiacciato technique - an innovation that formed the basis for the picturesque relief of the third doors of the baptistery. In his interpretation of the foreground figures, Ghiberti fully preserves his favorite features - grace of proportions, fragility of the physique, melodic play of lines.

The same phase in the development of Ghibertian pictorial relief is represented by the Cassa (cancer) dei Santi Proto, Giacinto e Nemesio from Florentine church Santa Maria degli Angeli (1426-1428; now kept in the Bargello). Cast from bronze, the reliquary at first glance reveals the hand of a jeweler, and, moreover, a jeweler who had excellent taste. Very beautiful in proportions, it is decorated on the front side with lovely figures of flying angels, who carry a garland with a Latin inscription. Light, flowing robes anticipate the style of drapery of the second half of the 15th century, and the low relief and skillfully used bold angles are the style of the reliefs of the third doors of the baptistery. These trends will get in them further development, as in the Cassa di San Zenobio in the Florence Cathedral (1432-1442, the main relief depicting the “Miracle of the Boy of the Strozzi Family” was cast in 1439). In cancer St. Zinovia side walls decorated with scenes from the life of the saint ("The Miracle of the Crushed Cart" and "The Miracle of the Servant"), and the front side is decorated with figures of six flying angels who carry a garland with a Latin inscription. Work on the shrine coincided with years of work on the reliefs of the third doors. Here we can talk about the identity of the style, a completely established style of pictorial relief.

The main relief with many figures is built according to all the rules of perspective. The background is designed in the form of a landscape and two architectural complexes. I would like to dwell on the latter in more detail, since Ghiberti gave them general great importance, as evidenced by such reliefs of the third doors as “The History of Isaac”, “The History of Joseph”, “The History of Joshua” and “The Meeting of the Queen of Sheba with Solomon”366. According to Ghiberti, the scenes, designed to create an impression of depth, determined the relationships through which “stories” (that is, the collection of figures and objects) became proportionate to the human eye(“colla ragione die l"occhio gli misura)366. Ghiberti’s architecture is quite special. It is undoubtedly inspired by early examples of Brunelleschi’s work. Ghiberti understood very well that Filippo highly valued the plane of the wall, not burdened with any unnecessary divisions and decorations. But that’s it he goes even further. The buildings in his architectural scenes are very unique. They are devoid of any decoration, smooth planes dominate in them, they are so light that they resemble houses of cards. But they are based on a new order system, the elements of which are made all "antica. And what is especially interesting is that this entire order system is elongated vertically. Re-faced, so to speak, in a Gothic manner. Thin slender pilasters involuntarily evoke Gothic tendencies , where possible, Ghiberti introduces cross rib vaults (“Meeting of the Queen of Sheba with Solomon.”) He loves to fantasize on architectural themes, loves to recreate on the plane the ensembles of a Renaissance city, puritanically strict and at the same time full of a very special charm, inherent only in the best of the creations of the early Renaissance.

The most mature work Ghiberti, who immortalized his name, is the third door of the Florentine Baptistery (1425-1452). Michelangelo considered them worthy of being the gates of heaven, and hence their name “Porta del Paradiso”. Here Ghiberti, as in the reliefs of the shrine of St. Zinovia, appears fully armed with specific techniques of pictorial relief, creating a work that served starting point for later Renaissance works of this kind.

At first, the Kalimala workshop turned to Leonardo Bruni for advice, who recommended depicting twenty-eight scenes, “magnificent and meaningful” (letter from Bruni dated 1424 (?)). This program drew objections from Traversari and Niccolo Niccoli. Apparently, Traversari, famous as an expert in patristics, was Ghiberti’s main adviser, especially considering the fact that the themes of the Old Testament scenes were developed from the point of view not of scholastic literature, but of the works of the church fathers.

Final program (ten big stages with inserted episodes) was installed in 1428-1429, and Ghiberti is undeniably responsible for its development.

played a lot decisive role. The most important was the abandonment of the Gothic form of quadrifolia used in the first and second doors of the baptistery, and their replacement with simple, smooth rectangular frames. This fact alone speaks of Ghiberti’s conscious transition to Renaissance positions. The entire structure of the double doors gained clarity and calm. All that remained was to find such proportions that the rectangular reliefs would fit well with the framing of the door leaves and the framing of the entire portal.

The Old Testament scenes are read from left to right within each register, then moving to the register below. The story begins with “The Creation of the Heavens, Stars and Man” and ends with “The Meeting of the Queen of Sheba with Solomon”367. Following the Trecentist traditions, Ghiberti gave each relief a number of additional episodes (he calls them “effetti”), thereby violating one of the basic principles of realistic art - the unity of place and time. Ghiberti's story has a spasmodic character, which colors it in somewhat fairy-tale tones. Here he follows in the footsteps of the Siena painter Bartolo di Fredi (frescoes in San Gimignano) and the Pisan Piero di Puccio (frescoes in Camposanto). With extraordinary ingenuity, Ghiberti combines various episodes in one relief (he depicted thirty-seven episodes in total). Thus, in the first relief, the viewer sees God the Father in heaven surrounded by angels, the creation of Adam and Eve in the foreground, the Fall in the distance on the left, expulsion from paradise on the right. These multi-temporal episodes are so skillfully arranged that the story flows smoothly without interruption. To do this, one had to be a great master of composition, and Ghiberti manifests himself as such in all other reliefs. In accordance with the meaning of the individual compositions, Ghiberti placed the figures and heads of prophets and prophetesses in niches on the sides, and in the center, under the second relief from the bottom, he placed a self-portrait and a portrait of his son Vittorio, who actively helped him.

In framing the doors and portals, Ghiberti made extensive use of plant motifs, which he processed with extraordinary care. The niches are separated from each other by ornamental inserts that protrude slightly forward, emphasizing the recesses of the niches. The frame of the portal is given a much more powerful relief. There are leaves, fruits, and ears of corn here. Various birds and squirrels swarm among them. Everything is conveyed with amazing precision and love, which clearly shows what a passionate admirer of nature Ghiberti was. There are a lot of remnants of late Gothic naturalism here, but everything has become denser, more voluminous, more weighty, in short, more realistic.

Each of the gilded reliefs is cast from one piece, and not mounted, as on the second doors, from different parts. This stimulated the “pictorial” construction of compositions, with extensive use of perspective. Usually the line protrudes slightly beyond the rectangular frame, but the compositions on top do not extend beyond its limits, this gives the reliefs a slight concavity. The statues and heads of prophets and prophetesses were cast separately and then inserted into niches. There are a lot of ancient motifs in these statues and heads, as well as in the reliefs themselves. From about 1416 until the end of his life, Ghiberti accumulated great amount sketches from ancient monuments (mainly from sarcophagi, reliefs of the Arch of Constantine, Trajan's Column, frieze of the Temple of Minerva at the Forum of Nerva, etc.). He resorted to them when he wanted to achieve greater expression of faces, greater vitality and harmony of complex figured groups, greater convincingness in conveying the movement of fluttering draperies and individual gestures. In the third doors, art historians have noted many direct borrowings from ancient sculpture. But Ghiberti subjected all these borrowings to such changes that they could organically dissolve in his own plan. Ancient art, as perceived by the master, was not nature itself, as Donatello imagined it, but contained the principles and laws that governed nature. Its main significance for Ghiberti was that it was purified and

improved edition of nature368. In this approach, Ghiberti was close to the Florentine humanists, who became more and more seriously interested in ancient art (Niccolò Niccoli, Poggio and others). And, probably, not without their influence, he himself began to collect antiques.

It would be unnecessary rigor to analyze each of the reliefs separately, especially since many of them contain up to a hundred or more figures acting as simple extras. Ghiberti clearly formulated his basic attitude in the Commentarii: “I planned in them [that is, in the reliefs of the third doors] to respect all dimensions and tried to imitate nature, as far as it was in my power, and also [to imitate] all the outlines that I could draw from it, as well as an excellent and rich composition of numerous figures.”369. Here we have a kind of manifesto for the new realistic art. To achieve the effect of depth, Ghiberti attached great importance to architectural scenes depicted in perspective (he calls them casa-menti). Of no less importance were the plans (piani) decreasing in degree of relief, which in at the greatest distance were performed in rilievo schiac-ciato. Finally, the size and volume of the figures were strictly differentiated depending on the degree of their distance from the viewer’s eye. In this system, everything was based on size and proportions. This is how the boundaries between the painting and the “picturesque relief” were smoothed out.

In the composition of the scenes decorating the third doors, Ghiberti reveals truly amazing ingenuity. One involuntarily gets the impression that he puts it together easily, without special effort, although in fact each of the reliefs was the fruit of long and diligent work. It is especially striking how skillfully he combines episodes from different times (effetti) and how rich his repertoire of various movement motifs is. Looking carefully at the reliefs, you find in them many charming details, suggested by life and completely unexpected. But on the whole, Ghiberti remains in this, the most “Renaissance” of his works, true to his youthful skills as a jeweler and his attraction to everything

graceful and melodic. He is little attracted to the individual appearance of a person and the opportunity to express a certain character in him. Therefore, it would be in vain to look for the embodiment of the new humanistic ideal of man in his reliefs. Pretty and outwardly beautiful usually blur the boundaries of the individual.

Probably, without Brunelleschi's discovery and without Alberti's advice, Ghiberti would never have been able to give such bold perspective solutions as we find in the reliefs of Porta del Paradiso. However, he understands perspective more freely, more “empirically”, taking into account the changing point of view of the viewer. Brunelleschi's promising system must have seemed too rigid and somewhat mechanistic to him. He deliberately does not observe a single perspective point of view for all reliefs370, but builds compositions of individual reliefs from his own point of view. He takes into account that the viewer looking at the doors will not stand in one place, but will be in motion. Therefore, he develops his compositions much more freely than Brunelleschi and Alberti would have done. The lines do not always converge strictly at one point, and cases of optical deformations are not uncommon. This free use of perspective fits well with Ghiberti’s “murmuring” story, replete with inserted episodes.

Ghiberti's art - absolutely a special case in Quattrocentist history artistic culture. If the master had executed only the second doors of the baptistery, he should have been given a place, like Lorenzo Monaco, among the belated trecentists. But Ghiberti didn’t stop there. The husband is very experienced, he was able to take into account the changes that did not occur on his initiative in Florentine art in the second and third decades of the 15th century. Hence his involvement in new, realistic trends. However, unlike Donatello, Ghiberti never broke with the past, with the traditions of the “soft style”. Thus was born unique symbiosis from elements of late Gothic and early Renaissance. It would be incorrect to characterize Ghiberti as a “conservative.” It developed, albeit slowly, but extremely consistently and purposefully. He wanted to remain himself, but he also wanted to “keep up with the times.” I wanted to preserve the face of a jeweler who most of all valued elegance and quality work and sought a special melody in his work. compositional structures and the melodiousness of the lines, but also wanted to “imitate nature as far as it was in his power.” Here he had to learn the foundations of new perspective thinking, inseparable from the new, realistic art that was born before his eyes. Thus, Ghiberti, remaining himself, quietly took his place among Brunelleschi, Donatello and Masaccio, although he was much inferior to them in the boldness and monumentality of artistic decisions.

Ghiberti, Lorenzo- This article or section needs to be revised. Please improve the article in accordance with the rules for writing articles... Wikipedia

Ghiberti- Lorenzo (Ghiberti, Lorenzo) 1381, Florence 1455, Florence. Italian sculptor, one of the leading masters of the Early Renaissance. The son of a certain Mona Fiora and Cione Ghiberti, who left his family early; was adopted by his mother's second husband, jeweler Bartolo... European art: Painting. Sculpture. Graphics: Encyclopedia

Ghiberti Lorenzo- (Ghiberti) (circa 1381 1455), Italian sculptor and jeweler of the Early Renaissance. He worked mainly in Florence. At the beginning of his creativity (reliefs of the northern doors of the Florentine Baptistery, 1404 24) he retained the Gothic... ... Art encyclopedia

Ghiberti, Lorenzo- Ghiberti L. The Creation of Adam and Eve. Fragment of the eastern doors of the Florentine Baptistery. GIBERTI (Ghiberti) Lorenzo (about 1381 1455), Italian sculptor and goldsmith of the Florentine school of the Early Renaissance. In graceful multi-figure bronze... ... Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary

Ghiberti Lorenzo- (c. 1381 1455) Italian sculptor and jeweler. Representative of the Florentine school of the early Renaissance. In the bronze reliefs of the northern (1404 24) and eastern (1425 52) doors of the baptistery in Florence, he turned to the experience of ancient art,... ... Big encyclopedic Dictionary

Ghiberti Lorenzo- Ghiberti Lorenzo (circa 1381, Florence, ≈ 12/1/1455, ibid.), Italian sculptor and jeweler of the Early Renaissance. He worked in Florence, as well as in Siena (1416≈17), Venice (1424≈25) and Rome (before 1416 and around 1430). His early works… … Great Soviet Encyclopedia

GIBERTI- (Ghiberti) Lorenzo (circa 1381 1455), Italian sculptor and goldsmith of the Florentine school of the Early Renaissance. In the elegant multi-figure bronze reliefs of the northern (1404 24) and eastern (1425 52) gates of the baptistery in Florence, he turned to experience... ... Modern encyclopedia

Ghiberti- (Lorenzo Ghiberti, 1378 1455) famous Florentine sculptor, foundry and goldsmith; received his initial education from Bartoluccio and Gerard Scarnina. He fled from the plague in 1400 from Florence, but soon returned to... ... Encyclopedic Dictionary F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Efron

Ghiberti Lorenzo- (Ghiberti) (circa 1381 1455), Italian sculptor and goldsmith. Master of the Florentine school of the Early Renaissance. In the bronze reliefs of the northern (1404 24) and eastern (1425 52) doors of the baptistery in Florence, he turned to the experience of ancient art,... ... encyclopedic Dictionary

The day before yesterday I was at the Pushkin Museum at the Caravaggio exhibition. Especially for those who have not yet been to the exhibition, but want to go: I entered the museum exactly at 11 o’clock - there was NO queue. The exhibition is amazing and if I dare to talk about it, it will only be after preliminary preparation.

In the meantime, let's go to room 28, where Italian sculpture of the 15th century is presented.

Among the many masterpieces in this room are the famous "Gates of Paradise" by Lorenzo Ghiberti, the original of which, made in bronze and covered with gilding, is located in Florence. This gate, the eastern gate of the baptistery, is one of the masterpieces of which Florence is rightfully proud. Once I stood enchanted by their beauty, and later I tried to describe my impressions: “For almost six centuries, the world has to thank the guild of merchants who sponsored the manufacture of the gates and, at the same time, Ghiberti, the pope’s favorite and famous artist in this area. Of the 74 years of his life, Ghiberti gave 47 to the gates of the Baptistery. At first, it took 20 years to make the northern gate, which we did not see, and Donatello and Brunelleschi competed for this order, but the model of the young Ghiberti turned out to be preferable. Later, another 27 years (1425-1452) were spent on making the eastern gate. It seems that the careful study of the bas-reliefs of the Arch of Titus was not in vain, but the picky Muratov decided that Ghiberti, unlike ancient sculptors, lacked a sense of proportion. In addition to the gates, the hardworking Ghiberti did a lot of different things: he educated a galaxy of students, sculpted sculptures, a shrine with a tomb, and jewelry. He even made a miter for Pope Eugene, and, at the same time, wrote the first history of Renaissance art, “Commentaries,” in three books.” I knew that, standing in front of the Baptistery, I was admiring only a copy; the original was being restored.

“After restoration, the original will be kept in the Museum of Art of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, since they can only be preserved indoors and in containers filled with nitrogen. Over time, the copy will also darken, so we were here in time, we saw, although it was a copy, but in all its original glory.” Maybe. The restoration has already been completed and the original gate pleases tourists, as promised, in the cathedral museum.

I continue to wander through the waves of my memories: “Another surprise: on some slabs, according to Gothic laws, there are several scenes, a maximum of six. Vasari believed that this panel was the most difficult and also the most beautiful. The panels are large, rectangular. Ghiberti used newly invented laws of perspective and various sculptural techniques, from engraved lines to almost free-standing sculpture." Special place next to small figurines biblical prophets and the sibyls in the niches framing the relief are occupied by two sculpted heads in a medallion, located between the third and fourth tiers on the left wing in the center and playing the role of door handles. These are portraits of Lorenzo Ghiberti himself and his nephew, who helped him in his work.

But let’s return from Florence to the hall of Italian sculpture at the Pushkin Museum, where a copy of “The Gates of Heaven” is mounted in the wall, which appeared in the museum thanks to the efforts of Ivan Vladimirovich Tsvetaev. The plaster cast of “The Gates of Heaven” was made by Tsvetaeva in the best Florentine workshop of Lelli at that time. Back in January 1903, Tsvetaev wrote to Nechaev-Maltsev about how he compared the plaster with the doors of the Baptistery, and in March 1911, in a letter to P.I. Bartenev returned to this topic again. “In St. Petersburg, I got acquainted with the archives of the Academy of Arts, and was interested in the question of when and how plaster casts from works of Italian sculpture were acquired there. The beginning here belongs to Catherine II, and the beginning was brilliant..."

We continue to read Tsvetaev’s letter: “This time I was interested in the case of the Bronze doors of the St. Petersburg Kazan Cathedral, representing a copy of the same doors Florence Baptistery slave. Lorenzo Ghiberti. The St. Petersburg bronze copy is perhaps the only one in the world.” But then Tsvetaev wrote that in the Kazan Cathedral, Ghiberti’s boards are mixed up and “the bronze copy represents the events of the Old Testament narratives in an impossible order.” To top it all off, it turned out that in the cathedral they were selling explanations in which the artist was not named Lorenzo Ghiberti, but a certain Battister. Tsvetaev wrote “...obviously, from Battistero - Baptisterium... -what a shame!” The history of the Gate from St. Petersburg is as follows: when the construction of the cathedral was completed, the construction commission decided to reproduce plaster cast doors, donated to the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts by N.A. Demidov, in bronze. The casting and embossing of this copy was entrusted to the “casting and embossing master of the Academy of Arts Vasily Ekimov.” He was given 182 pounds and 39 pounds of copper for his work. But, having entrusted Ekimov with the casting of the gate, he was not given a consultant. Without knowing the sequence of the depicted scenes, Ekimov rather arbitrarily placed " Italian paintings". The first four panels are located in the same way as in Ghiberti, and the rest are in the following order: 10, 7, 6, 5, 8, 9. Ghiberti’s special merit was that he sought to endow plastic with perspective, i.e., a means , which until that time was considered the exclusive property of painting. This task was brilliantly succeeded by V. Ekimov. The ornamentation of the frames and door frames belongs to Voronikhin and is made of marble.

Of course, I photographed all the plates except the top ones, and now I will present them along with images of the same plates, but from Florence, which I found on the Internet. The plot program of “The Gates of Heaven,” compiled by the greatest Italian humanist, Chancellor of the Florentine Republic Leonardo Bruni, is based on the main events from the “Book of Genesis” of the Bible. By combining individual episodes into 10 large square fields, he decided to design each relief as an integral multi-figure composition. Some of them have more than a hundred characters. The narrative begins with the top left composition of the “Creation of the World,” which includes scenes of the creation of Adam and Eve and the expulsion of the first parents from Paradise. Each brand usually combines several episodes from different times. From left to right, in registers - from top to bottom, the plots are located: The Creation of Adam and Eve. The Fall. Expulsion from Paradise.

The work of the first man. Sacrifice of Cain and Abel. Cain kills Abel. God curses Cain

Noah and his family, having left the ark, build an altar. Noah's drunkenness.

Angels appear to Abraham. Sacrifice of Isaac

Just in case, I repeat - first - the image of the plate from the Pushkin Museum, then - from Florence.
Birth of Esau and Jacob. Esau cedes his birthright to Jacob, Isaac sends Esau to hunt. Esau - while hunting, Rebekah gives advice to Jacob. Isaac is deceived.

I didn’t get the next image from the Pushkin Museum.
Joseph was sold to merchants. Discovery of the golden cup in Benjamin's sack. Joseph reveals himself to his brothers.

And again - first - the Pushkin Museum. Moses receives a code of laws on Mount Sinai.

The people of Israel in the waters of the Jordan. Fall of Jericho

Battle against the Philistines. David kills Goliath

Solomon receives the Queen of Sheba.

The unity of the spatial solution, recreating visual illusion depth, the use of the laws of mathematical perspective likens the reliefs to a painter’s painting. It is no coincidence that such sculptural reliefs received the name “picturesque reliefs”. The elegance and festivity of the impression of the “Gates of Heaven” is enhanced by the decorative framing of the portal with a frieze with plant garlands and animals.