1.6.25 — The Second City
Can this be the Dark Ages? Europe in 1300 was bursting with art and light.
Gothic architecture had soared into the light and brought it into the cathedral. In the quiet confines of books and illuminated manuscripts, rtists were beginning to picture medieval life as never before. Philosophy, a school called Scholasticism, had blessed intellectual inquiry. It positively demanded a return to classical times and the rigor of Aristotle—in the service, of course, of true belief. And so much more was to come, if, that is, one knew where to look. How about, say, to Tuscany?
A weak pope was facing greater challenges, even as trade routes to the East brought new goods, new ideas, and a new prosperity. And a key route, connecting France and Italy, ran right through Tuscany—in particular, though Siena. Local princes were showing their strength, and Siena was styling itself a republic dedicated to the Virgin. It also held off its chief rival, Florence, in war earning the right to try. The Renaissance was not so very far off after all, and the Met looks beyond Florence for its origins. It is “Siena: The Rise of Painting,” through January 26, and it will be my subject all this week, with an extra post tomorrow for Siena’s place in Europe and now the Met.
Read more, now in a feature-length article on this site.