Art Superlatives: Bello, Bellissimo…Bellini!

By Anna Bottinelli

Two years after the memorable exhibition on Antonello da Messina, the Scuderie del Quirinale has opened its doors to the works of another Renaissance artist, Giovanni Bellini. The Venetian painter, also called “Giambellino,” lived in the second half of the 15^th Century and is regarded as the forerunner to Leonardo da Vinci.

Considered as “the best of all painters” by Albrecht Dürer, the pre-eminent German painter and printmaker best known for his Apocalypse woodcuts, Bellini introduced a more systematic use of oil paint, which was already commonplace in the art of Dürer’s Northern Europe. Bellini is the one who conferred to his paintings soft colours and warm atmospheres, which will later be perfected by Giorgione and Titian. Bellini is the one who gave feelings to a landscape and painted human figures in harmony with nature, and has earned widespread acclaim as Leonardo da Vinci’s precursor.

The spectacular Pesaro Altarpiece opens the exhibition. Enriched by its original frame, it shows the Coronation of the Virgin Mary. The scene is dominated by the back of the marble throne on which the Virgin and Christ are seated. The frame within a frame creates a kaleidoscopic effect, which intrigues and compels the observer. Four saints, typical in a “sacra conversazione” setting, are concentrated on their readings and meditations. The mix of divine and human power here is the major force of Bellini’s work.

Among the many works on display, two figures of Madonna hone a spectator’s understanding of the creative process of Bellini’s style. The Madonna of Amsterdam (1460) is closer to the style of Mantegna, with its solidity and sculpture-like taste; the Veronese Madonna (1480) exhibits an extraordinary sense of modernity, which is especially visible in the face of the Baby Jesus. A similar development can be observed in the traditional style of the Genzano Polyptych, the human Christ Supported by two Angels, and the naturalistic Resurrection, from Staatliche Museen in Berlin. Other works of art such as the Barbarigo Altarpiece, the Baptism of Christ, for the commissioner Battista Graziani, or the Alzano Madonna, were of invaluable importance for the inspiration of fellow artists.

Bellini painted what he saw; nothing less and nothing more than that. This will make him subject to criticism from conservative artists, who believed in the arts as idealization and not the reproduction per se, of nature. It is this naturalistic touch, though, that always renders the viewing of Bellini’s paintings as an enigmatic, breathtaking experience.

But praise must also be given to Mauro Zocchetta and his sublime exhibit design. The spectator looks at the works of art through windows of plaster in a warm, dark-red atmosphere. Sixty of Bellini’s paintings from all over the world will be on display until January 11, 2009. Don’t miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!