Cima da Conegliano. Giovanni Battista Cima da Conegliano "Annunciation" One-part altar paintings
Cima da Conegliano (1459 − 1517) can rightfully be called a prominent representative of the Venetian school of Renaissance painting. The artist was born in the small town of the Venetian province of Conegliano, in the family of a cloth processor. The artist’s work was influenced by such masters of painting as Alvise Vivarini, Antonello da Messina and Giovanni Bellini, who played an important role in developing the style of Cima’s writing. Compared to other greatest Masters of that time, the modest artist Chima was not so outstanding, and his works were smaller than those of the recognized classics of the Renaissance. Not everyone is destined to become Raphael. However, his works looked very worthy (the second half of the artist’s creative activity is characterized by a clearly expressed personal style and excellent painting technique) and aroused great interest among European art connoisseurs.
The master spent most of his life in Venice, which has always attracted artists with its stunning landscapes, beautiful architecture and numerous spectacular performances. Chima, thanks to his meditative temperament, was predisposed to philosophical reflections on traditional religious topics, and reflected mostly such subjects in his paintings. The artist has about a hundred works dedicated to religious themes, among them there are many images of the Madonna.
The lyrical works of Cima da Conegliano are characterized by poetry, noble simplicity of images, extraordinary purity and sublimity of feelings, the beauty of characters focused on prayer, a harmonious connection between a peaceful person and nature filled with emotional content.
The artist had a desire for sensory knowledge of the surrounding world, its beauty and richness of forms. This was characteristic of the creative spirit of the artists of the Italian Quattrocento (a generally accepted designation for the era of Italian art of the 15th century, correlated with the Early Renaissance period). The main role in the embodiment of the knowable world and nature for all Venetian artists, including Cima, was played by color. The master’s later works differ from the earlier ones in color due to their soft, radiant lighting, the play of light and shadow transitions, and the delicate colors of the paints, close to a light golden tone.
The artist managed to realize the main goal of his incarnation on earth - to decorate this world with his beautiful creations.
Annunciation. 1495, tempera and oil, 137×107 cm. St. Petersburg, Hermitage
Let's look at one of Cima da Conegliano's greatest works, The Annunciation.
The idea for this work was the Gospel story - the appearance of the Archangel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary. If you hold your gaze on this work for a long time, you will be able to feel how a positive charge of energy emanates from it, full of peace and tranquility. These sensations arise thanks to the artist’s greatest talent, which is manifested in a successfully found composition, expressiveness and specificity of the main characters, good construction of three-dimensional space and that very golden color.
The main action takes place in the interior of a Venetian palazzo (palace), emphasizing the solemnity of the captured moment.
The first character to whom we turn our attention is Archangel Gabriel, his dynamic figure in a white angelic robe with numerous folds. The Archangel approaches Mary to convey the good news. In his left hand is a white lily flower, a symbol of purity and innocence. Placing his right hand to his heart, the Archangel expresses respect and love to the holy virgin. You would think that he flew into this room on hiswings from an open window, which depicts a wonderful landscape filled with sunlight with architectural structures, a cathedral and a distant castle on a hill.
Divine sunlight penetrates into the interior itself, well illuminating the snow-white figure of Gabriel and the humble, motionless figure of Mary. She is clearly surprised and embarrassed by the sudden appearance of the Divine Messenger. We see her dressed in a sky-colored cloak thrown over a red dress. Mary was busy reading the holy book, kneeling on a small bench, according to Catholic custom. Covered with a double white and yellow scarf, symbolizing purity and holiness, the head of the Virgin Mary with submissively lowered eyes is turned towards the Archangel to receive the news that she is destined to become the mother of God's son.
The artist very successfully conveyed the inner sublime state of the characters in this magnificent creation. Such facial expressions were typical of characters in paintings of that period. Feelings are not clearly expressed, but are guessed. The artist tried to adhere to the Venetian style of painting, adopted at the end of the 15th century, which was characterized by the leisurely movements of the characters, their calm and peaceful poses, the concentration of their faces, creating an atmosphere of peace, serenity and simplicity.
I would like, without taking my eyes off, to admire these beautiful faces of Gabriel and Mary, focused on service and prayer.
The golden warm light that fills the detailed interior penetrates into the audience’s hearts and encourages them to think about the omnipresent God.
Text prepared by Ruslan Petryakov
And why bother - he called himself a milk mushroom, so show him the paintings of Cima da Conegliano. It’s possible, perhaps, even without text: the plots are clear, the characters are easy to guess.
1. John the Baptist(from the already described church of Madonna dell'Orto in Cannaregio):
2. Worship of the Shepherds- this is from the church of Santa Maria del Carmine, I only mentioned it in passing when I was walking along Dorsoduro with you. 
3. Coronation of the Virgin Mary- this is from San Zanipolo (in our opinion, in Russian it will be Saints John and Paul), you and I will definitely go there, we must complete the obligatory program on the tombs: 
4. Baptism of Christ- this is from San Giovanni in Bragora - Vivaldi's church. It’s better not to go there for the faint-hearted: the rector there made friends with a Russian priest from “our” parish of the Myrrh-Bearing Women. And these myrrh-bearers stuffed various relics (like the finger of John the Baptist) with inscriptions in Russian, as well as photographs of our great lord and father, into San Giovanni in Bragora. In general, PGM is on the march - be careful! 
Italian Renaissance painter. Born around 1460 in the city of Conegliano. Full name: Giovanni Batista Cima. He studied with Giovanni Bellini and was influenced by Antonello da Messina, Giorgione, and the early Titian. He worked mainly in the vicinity of Venice. Known for his landscapes and landscapes in the manner of Giovanni Bellini. He had the nickname “Poor Bellini.” Gained popularity in the 18th century as the “Venetian Masaccio.”
Giovanni Battista Cima da Conegliano died in his hometown of Conegliano in 1517 or 1518 (not exactly established).
During the Hermitage Days, after restoration, a painting by the famous Venetian Renaissance master Giovanni Battista Cima da Conegliano was presented ">
"The Annunciation" rightfully takes its place among the masterpieces of the State Hermitage art gallery. Fame and veneration accompanied the painting throughout its long history. In 1604, it was mentioned in one of the first printed guides to Venice: “In the chapel dedicated to the Annunciation, which is located to the left of the main chapel, there is a magnificent altar painting, painted by the most excellent painter Giovanni Battista Cima da Conegliano.”
We are talking about the interior decoration of the church of the Order of Crociferi, which was under the patronage of the Silk Weavers' Guild, immigrants from Lucca (the names of the masters who headed this corporation are written on a paper cartouche at the bottom of the picture, as is the date of creation of the altar - 1495).
The Order of Crociferi was abolished in 1657, the church passed to the Jesuit order, as a result, the “Annunciation” was transported to premises that belonged to the same workshop of silk weavers in the Abbey of Misericordia, and then to the Chapel del Rosario of the Cathedral of Santi Giovanni e Paolo. The condition of the painting at this time (1786) already raised serious concerns: “These altars, painted on wood, are in a deplorable state, the colors are lagging behind, they have turned black, many have been rewritten.”
At the beginning of the 19th century, the painting ended up in Moscow in the collection of the Golitsyn princes, who had one of the largest private art collections in Russia. In 1873, the painting was transferred from a wooden base to canvas (by the Hermitage restorer A. Sidorov). In 1886, as part of the Golitsyn collection, the Annunciation was acquired for the Hermitage.
Already contemporaries recognized “The Annunciation” as one of Chima’s highest creative achievements, evidence of his talent that had gained full strength. In it, the artist achieves an exceptional balance of all elements, which ultimately allows him to achieve unprecedented compositional harmony.
In the “Annunciation”, attention is drawn to the care taken in the elaboration of details: the veins of marble on the columns of the arched window, the inlaid pattern of the pillars of the canopy and its base, the inscription in Hebrew on the frieze of the canopy (quotes from the book of the prophet Isaiah “Behold, the Virgin shall be with child and bear a son” ), bookmarks between the pages of a book, the absence of glass in the “rose” stained glass window of the cathedral; finally, insects - flies and riders. Even the landscape opening outside the window has a real prototype - the Castelvecchio di Conegliano fortress rises on the top of the hill; a winding road descends from it. This is a real representation of the western wall of the castle, cut through by the Porta di Ser Belle, with the corner tower and the Bemba tower from the Zacchi garden, behind which rise the two main fortress towers. Against the background of such emphasized materiality, the event itself has a timeless sacred character, which is achieved by the statuesque poses and gestures of the Madonna and Archangel Gabriel. This moment, frozen in eternity, is only emphasized by the flowing hair of the archangel, the swaying of his clothes, the morning light penetrating through the open door and the shadows cast by figures and objects.
The removal of late restoration layers returned the Annunciation to the original color characteristic of Chima’s best works - a cold silvery palette with the finest light and shadow nuances. The variety of gradations in the transition from blue to white is amazing - from Gabriel’s robe, the whiteness of which is simply dazzling thanks to the variety of shades of silver-gray and blue in the shadows, to the deep sky-blue tone of the Madonna’s cloak. Light shadows cast by figures and objects give the space a depth that the composition previously lacked. Thanks to the play of light and shadow, folds appeared on the green canopy of the bed, and a silhouette appeared on the right of them - the shadow of the figure of Mary.
The delicacy of the light and shadow modulations gave a completely new, more gentle and spiritual expression to the faces of both characters; the incarnation acquired a pearlescent, porcelain tone. Under the book, on the end of the wooden stand, the artist's fingerprints were found - confirmation of the long-standing practice in Venice of shading the final strokes with the fingers. Finally, Latin letters were revealed at the bottom - the remains of the master's signature, a virtual reconstruction of which is presented on a separate tablet.
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Cima da Conegliano (Cima from Conegliano, Italian Cima da Conegliano, birth name - Giovanni Batista Cima, Italian Giovanni Batista Cima; born ca. 1459 in Conegliano; died there in 1517 or 1518) - Italian artist of the Venetian school Renaissance painting.
BIOGRAPHY OF THE ARTIST
Born around 1460 in the city of Conegliano.
Possibly studied with Bartolomeo Montagna in Vicenza.
Montagna's influence ceased to be felt in his work when, around 1492 (documented trip to Venice), the provincial master, having come into contact with the artistic culture of Venice, met Alvise Vivarini and discovered the “Altarpiece of San Cassiano” by Antonello da Messina. According to Pallucchini (1962), the polyptych from c. in Olera is the first fruit of Cima’s Venetian activity, continued by the artist in such works as “St. interview" (Milan, Brera Pinacoteca) and "Madonna and Saints" (1493, Conegliano, cathedral). Quite early, he finds his own style, which is close in theme and painting to creativity.
His art was influenced by and.
Giovanni Battista Cima da Conegliano died in his hometown of Conegliano in 1517 or 1518.
CREATION
The artist Cima da Conegliano painted mainly altar icons and paintings of religious content with the obligatory landscape in the background.
Da Conegliano's paintings are distinguished by lyricism, noble simplicity of images, golden color, strength and harmony of colors, character and expressiveness of faces presented motionless in submissive humility, classical beauty of characters, their concentrated prayer, visible connection of man with the surrounding nature, meticulousness of details, wide and beautiful styling draperies and transparency of light.
Many of Cima da Conegliano's paintings differ from those painted by similar masters in that the background of his paintings depicts a landscape with a motif taken from the mountainous areas of the artist's homeland - Frioul. The landscape represents low hills with castles and city walls, fields and lonely trees, and in the foreground there is a rock with rich vegetation or a beautiful portico.
Cima's poetry is heightened when he depicts the Madonna and the saints in a landscape that is both real and imaginary, against the backdrop of the gentle hills of Conegliano (St. Conversation, Lisbon, Gulbenkian Foundation). In this sensual dialogue between man and nature, light warms and softens the characters, located in the transparent atmosphere of a nostalgic landscape, and the Jordan flows among the hills (“Baptism of Christ”, 1494, Venice, C. San Giovanni in Bragora). The meticulousness of detail, the transparency of light, the classical beauty of the characters, characteristic of Cima’s work, are also visible in “Madonna of the Orange Tree” (c. 1495, Venice, Gal. Accademia), which depicts one of the most beautiful landscapes painted by the artist - the Salvatore Castle di Collalto.
Along with the iconography of the Holy Conversation created by Giovanni Bellini, Cima was also influenced by the polychrome architecture of some small-format paintings (The Sultan's Embassy, Zurich, Kunsthaus; The Miracle of St. Mark, Berlin-Dahlem, Museum) . Following his meditative temperament, Cima, more inclined to reflect on traditional themes than to create his own, performed many images of the Madonna and Child, among which the painting from c. Santa Maria della Consolacione in Este (Padua), dated 1504. The holy simplicity of Mary is expressed in bright colors (red, blue and yellow) and a monumental volume that stands out against the landscape background.
He received the nickname “Conegliano” after his hometown.
He was also called "poor man Bellini" due to his landscapes and landscapes in the manner of .
