Halls 5/6 – The International Gothic
The hall of the International Gothic introduces us to the refined style of painting known as “international or flamboyant Gothic”. Developed during the late XIV and the beginning of the XV century, this style is the expression of the elegant and fairy-tale taste of the courts and its blaze of rich clothes, gracious poses and sophisticated, often outstretched shapes.
To understand what is international Gothic, it is worth to stop and admire the Adoration of the Magi by Gentile da Fabriano, signed and dated 1423. This masterpiece, with its carved and gilded frame, was commissioned by Palla Strozzi, the richest citizen of Florence according to the census of 1427. The work is a veritable example of the courteous aesthetics and its dreamy flavor, where silver and gold decorations, splendid details, plushy fabrics and gentle figures catch the eye.
Another relevant artist of the “flamboyant style” is Lorenzo Monaco. In his Coronation of the Virgin completed in 1414, the painter monk instead of depicting the splendor of the courts, puts emphasis on the splendor of the crowned Virgin surrounded by saints and suspended above a fantastic rainbow. For this altarpiece Lorenzo Monaco used very bright colors and outlined the figures in a very refined, “courteous” way.
In the meantime the new Renaissance style was “blooming”. However the International Gothic did not disappear suddenly: for many years indeed it coexisted with the revolutionary ideals of the Renaissance.
