Italian artist Antonello da Messina: biography, creativity and interesting facts

Antonello da Messina is a well-known Italian artist. In the era of the Early Renaissance represented the southern school of painting. He was a teacher Girolamo Alibrandi, who was nicknamed Messina Raphael. To achieve the depth of color in acute portraits and poetic pictures, he applied the technique of oil painting. In the article we will pay attention to a brief biography of the artist and we will dwell on his works in more detail.

Representative of a new direction

Many information about the life of Antonello da Messina are controversial, questionable or lost. But it is quite obvious that it was he who demonstrated to the Venetian artists the luminous possibilities of oil painting. Thus, the Italian initiated one of the key areas of Western European art. Following the example of many other artists of the time, Antonello combined the Dutch tradition of optically accurate transmission of image details with the picturesque innovations of Italians.

Historians have found a record that in 1456 the hero of this article had a pupil. That is, most likely, the painter was born before 1430. Neololitan Colantonio was the first teacher of Antonello da Messina, whose works will be described below. This fact is confirmed by the message of J. Vasari. Just at that time, Naples was under the cultural influence of the Iberian Peninsula, the Netherlands and France rather than Northern Italy and Tuscany. Under the influence of the creativity of Van Eyck and his supporters, interest in painting grew with each passing day. There were rumors that the hero of this article was trained in the technique of oil painting just for him.

Portrait master

By birth Antonello da Messina was Italian, but in terms of artistic education, he was largely relevant to the picturesque traditions of northern Europe. He beautifully painted portraits, which amounted to almost thirty percent of his surviving works. Usually Antonello portrayed the model with a bob and close-up. At the same time, the shoulders and head were placed on a dark background. Sometimes, in the foreground, the artist painted a parapet with a cartroll attached to it (a small piece of paper with an inscription). Illusionistic accuracy and graphicalness in the transmission of these details indicate that they are of Dutch origin.

"Portrait of a Man"

This painting, written by Antonello da Messina in 1474-1475. Is one of his best works. The palette of the master is limited to a rich brown, black and individual strokes of flesh and white colors. The exception is a red cap, complemented by a peeping dark red strip of the lower dress. The inner world of the model drawn is practically not disclosed. But the person radiates intellect and energy. Antonello very subtly modeled his chiaroscuro. A sharp drawing of the features in combination with the play of light gives the work of Antonello almost sculptural expressiveness.

"This is a man"

Portraits of the Italian attract the viewer with a glossy, shiny surface and chamber format. And when these qualities and Messina endure in religious painting (the painting "This is a man"), the kind of human suffering becomes terribly painful. With tears on his face and a rope around his neck, the naked Christ gazes intently at the viewer. His figure fills almost the entire field of the canvas. The interpretation of the plot is slightly different from the icon-painting theme. The Italian sought to convey the most realistic psychological and physical image of Christ. This is what makes the viewer focus on the meaning of Jesus' sufferings.

"Maria Annunziata" by Antonello da Messina

This work, in contrast to the picture "This is a man", completely different in mood. But from the viewer, it also requires inner experience and emotional involvement. As for "Mary Annunziata", Antonello seems to put the viewer in the place of the archangel in space. This gives a sense of mental complicity. Seated behind the music stand, the Virgin Mary holds the blue veil over her left hand, and raises her other hand. The woman is absolutely calm and thoughtful, her evenly lit, sculpturedly sculpted head seems to emit light on the dark background of the picture.

"Maria Annunziata" - this is not the only breast portrait of a woman, written by Antonello da Messina. "Annunciation" is the name of another painter's canvas, depicting the same Virgin Mary, only in a different position: she holds the blue blanket with both hands.

In both paintings, the artist tried to express the feeling of a woman's spiritual connection with higher powers. Her expression, the pose of her hands and head, and her gaze tell the viewer that Maria is now far from the mortal world. And the black background of the canvases only emphasizes the sanctity of the Virgin.

"St. Jerome in the cell »

In the above paintings there is not even a minimal interest in the problem of transferring the surrounding space. But in other works the painter in this respect is significantly ahead of his time. In the painting "St. Hieronymus in the cell "depicts a saint reading from the lectern. His study is located inside the Gothic Hall, on the back wall of which are cut windows in two floors. In the foreground, the image is framed by a curb and an arch. They are perceived as proskenium (a technique common in the art of countries located to the north of the Alps). The mustard color of the stone underscores the contrast of shadow and light inside the room, which looks like a cave. The details of the painting (landscape in the distance, birds, objects on the shelves) are transmitted with a very high degree of accuracy. Such an effect can be achieved only by applying oil paint in fairly small strokes. But the most important advantage of painting and Messina is still not in the reliable transfer of details, but in the stylistic unity of the air and light.

Monumental altar

In the years 1475-1476. The artist lived in Venice. There he wrote for the church of San Cassiano a majestic altar. Unfortunately, until today only its central part is preserved, where the Madonna and the Child towering on the throne are depicted. On both sides of it are the saints. This altar is a type of sacrament conversion. That is, the Madonna and the Child and the saints are in the same space. And this is opposite in form to a polyptych divided into parts. The reconstruction of the monumental altar was based on the later work of Giovanni Bellini.

"Pieta" and "Crucifixion"

Oil painting Antonello, or rather, the possibility of transmitting lighting with this technique, was highly appreciated by his fellow artists. Since that time Venetian colorism was based solely on developing the great potential of the new direction. Works and Messina of the Venetian period have the same conceptual tendency as his early works. Strongly stale picture of "Pieta", even in such a damaged state fills the audience with a tense sense of compassion. On the lid of the tomb, the dead body of Christ is held by three angels with pointed wings flying through the air. The artist painted the central figure close-up. It is as if pressed against the surface of the canvas. Empathy for the depicted suffering - that's what, using the above technique, sought Antonello da Messina. "Crucifixion" is another picture of the painter. It is similar to the theme of the "Pieta". The canvas depicts Jesus, crucified on the cross. To his right sits Maria, and to the left - the Apostle John. As well as "Pieta", the canvas is aimed at creating sympathy for the viewer.

"Saint Sebastian"

This picture is an example of how Antonello competed in depicting the heroic nudity and skill of transferring a linear perspective with his northern Italian counterparts. Against the backdrop of a stone-paved square, the body of a saint pierced with arrows becomes huge. Interspersing space, a fragment of the column in the foreground and a perspective with a very low point of descent state that the painter used the principles of Euclidean geometry in composing the composition.

Interesting Facts

• Antonello da Messina, whose pictures were described above, usually portrayed his heroes in a poke, close-up and on a dark background.
• According to J. Vasari, the Italian traveled to the Netherlands to learn the secret of the new techniques of painting. However, this fact is not proved.
• Until now, it has not been reliably established who taught the hero of this article of oil painting. According to rumors, it was Van Eyck.