Lamentations Over Time
When analyzing a painting, or any art form, one must pay particular attention to the relationship between the work’s form, composition, and culture. These elements are important to understanding a piece’s purpose, and why it was produced in this particular time period. In this paper, the painting, Attributed to Quenten Metsys, Lamentation, c. 1520 will be analyzed and compared to Giotto’s Lamentation, c. 1305 to understand the differences in how these elements are portrayed when used in two different settings. These two paintings depict the same scene, but they are painted in two very different styles. Located in the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, the painting Attributed to Quenten Metsys Lamentation, c. 1520 can be recognized as a Northern Italian work of art due to the immense detail and vivid coloration that could only be achieved through the use of oil paint. When the 1300s began, two Renaissance movements took place in both the Southern and Northern regions of Italy. The popular and most commonly used medium during the southern Renaissance was fresco, where artists would paint straight on the wall. But, during the Northern Renaissance, oil paint was the more commonly used medium that was being experimented with. So, the fact that the Attributed to Quenten Metsys Lamentation, c. 1520 is an oil painting categorizes it as a northern piece of art. As this piece is further analyzed, it is revealed that there are ten figures in the foreground, and four figured in the background. The artist does not show much importance of the background, all that can be seen there are two workers, two crucifixions, and the empty cross where Jesus was formerly hung, but even then, the empty cross is slightly cut out of the painting. In the foreground there is a much greater use of chiaroscuro, especially on the drapery of the figures. It is apparent that the artist was really concerned with conveying fabric here. Signs of grief are displayed upon the figures’ faces, along with tears and slight hand gestures. What really adds to the story of this piece is the artist’s inclusion of the nails and thorn crown which in the Bible are part of the crucifixion of Jesus. Also, there are no painted halos on the figures and the inclusion of an ordinary household water vase. This was most likely done because the artist wanted to portray the figures as everyday people in this time period. To the right of the painting, there are two figures cut off, and they are interacting with another unseen figure. This scene does not come across as a crowded, chaotic jumble of people surrounding Jesus’ body. Instead it is a more solemn, quiet scene as the figures grieve for Jesus and his death as Giotto’s Lamentation, c. 1305. In Giotto’s depiction of the scene, there appears to be more chaos as a lot more bodies are interacting around Jesus. There appears to be a crowd of dozens of bodies off to the far left, and a group of distressed angels are flying down to witness the scene. Unlike the Attributed to Quenten Metsys Lamentation, Giotto exemplifies the backs of figures to include the viewers in the scene. He also makes it a deal to paint halos above the heads of the figures so that the audience can recognize that these are heavenly beings. He also uses chiaroscuro, but it is very shallow compared to that of the Quenten Metsys Lamentation, c. 1520. Like this painting, Giotto reveals expressions of grief and emotion as some figures fling their hands backwards. Another difference found between the two scenes is that in the Quenten Metsys Lamention, the full figure of Jesus is visible and is centered for the most part, but in Giotto’s Lamentation, there is a figure blocking the full view of Jesus, and he is not centered in the painting. This is interesting because Giotto did his rendition of the scene two-hundred and fifteen years before the Quenten Metsys’ rendition, and it was a very traditional style in the south, before Giotto’s work, to place important figures in the center of a painting. So, the artist of the Attributed to Quenten Metsys Lamentation must be gravitating towards a more traditional piece of northern religious work. This is a very important cultural difference to consider because it reveals that the Northern origins over a span of two hundred years are still influencing the artist to place Jesus as the most important figure, in the center of the piece and to not have his body blocked by any other less important figure. The northern artist also believes that it is an important aspect to keep the faces of the figures mostly visible because he does not want the viewer to feel any confusion when observing the scene. In Giotto’s Lamentation, he exemplifies a less traditional view of Christianity. He stresses that although Jesus is the most important figure in the painting, it is not necessary to place him the center of the piece, but rather off center as to make the painting more interesting and dynamic. He is trying to portray a more realistic scene to the story, so that when people look at his work, they can get a truer sense of how the story took place. This was part of the Renaissance movement of the south because the Catholics wanted a more personal experience of the stories in their Bibles. As in the north, paintings were made more personal and relatable by an artist’s inclusion of certain symbols, everyday households and household items like with the inclusion of the water vase in the Attributed to Quenten Metsys Lamention. The impact of viewing the Attributed to Quenten Metsys Lamentation, c. 1520 in the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston is one of great admiration. To view such a beautiful piece at that size really brings one to respect the artist, and their art itself. The museum space provided for the piece is not too over spacious, but large enough to keep you at a cozy distance. Surrounding the piece are other religious works, so when you are in that room with painting framed in gold, it becomes really glorified. Especially because there is a window at the top of the room where natural light comes in and illuminates the pale flesh of Jesus. When I went to visit the piece, the weather was really rainy and cloudy at first, but then the sunlight suddenly broke through the clouds, and it changed the whole painting to this aw-admiring scene. The silence in the Museum of Fine Arts really gives you the chance to view the painting without distraction, and creates this peaceful environment where you can stand there and reflect on your thoughts of the piece. I think that viewing a piece in its original form really gives the viewer a chance to connect what they are viewing to the artist, and the labor that the artist put into the work because in person, you can see the artist’s brush strokes, the tiny variation of color, and the size in which the artist created their piece. It is a much different experience compared to viewing a tiny thumbnail on your computer screen, or a poster that was purchased at a gift shop because a reproduction does not hold all that the original piece has to offer.