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Uffizi Gallery: Art Palace of the “City of Flowers”_Guangming.com

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Uffizi Gallery: Art Palace of the “City of Flowers”_Guangming.com

Author: Zhuge Yi (Professor of Hangzhou Normal University)

  Poet Xu Zhimo wrote the modern poem “A Night in Emerald” in Italy in 1925. “Emerald” is the Italian city of Florence, which means “City of Flowers”.

Compared with Rome, which carries a rich history, Florence is more like a city that perfectly combines art and romance. Wandering in the middle, it is like strolling in the magnificent open-air museum like a huge maze – as far as you can look up, there are relics of the Renaissance bathed in the Tuscan sun; between the humming, the artistic atmosphere is like the sound of the long-lasting pipe organ Gently reverberate. In this “City of Flowers”, there are countless ancient palaces and palaces, the most charming of which is the Uffizi Art in the Uffizi Palace (the palace used to be the government affairs hall). museum. It is located in the traditional heart of power in Florence, between the Town Hall Square and the Arno River, not far from the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore. She is a precious treasure chest, and in those long maze-like rooms, amazing works of art are collected and displayed, including Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, Boetti There are also paintings by Renaissance masters such as Celli, Tintoretto, Rembrandt, Rubens, and Van Dyck, as well as ancient Greek and Roman sculptures that have stood for thousands of years, as well as works by contemporary artists who are in the limelight. The Uffizi Gallery is undoubtedly the most magnificent flower in Florence, the “City of Flowers”.

Today, she has brought her most beautiful and rare works to the Chinese audience. In the next five years starting from 2022, ten art exhibitions from the collection of the Uffizi Gallery will be held at Shanghai Dongyi Art Museum, among which two exhibitions will be “Botticelli and the Renaissance” and “Self-Portrait of a Master” It is a key project of the “2022 China-Italy Year of Culture and Tourism”. This is the first large-scale appearance in China of the world-class treasures collected by the Uffizi Gallery in Italy. This art tour across the Atlantic is undoubtedly of great significance to the cultural exchanges between China and Italy.

Raphael self portrait profile picture

  1. The glory of a family, the wisdom of a woman

The famous Medici family was the actual ruler of Florence from the 15th to the early 18th century. The founder of the family, Cosimo de Medici Sr. (Cosimo I) was shrewd and capable, enthusiastic and generous. He recruited many outstanding architects and artists to build various projects funded by him. In 1559, Cosimo I, the Duke of Tuscany, commissioned his favorite architect, Giorgio Vasari, the “father of modern Western art history”, to design and build it next to Palazzo Vecchio, the center of power in Florence. A magnificent building housing the Florentine courts and important guilds and administrative offices, called the Uffizi (Italian for “office”). In order to demonstrate the rule of the Medici family over Florence, Vasari built a corridor connecting the Palazzo Vecchio, the Uffizi Palace and the Pitti Palace, the private residence of the Medici family. Today, both sides of the Vasari corridor are covered with The artist’s self-portrait. After the death of Cosimo the Elder and Vasari, the Uffizi Palace was completed in 1581 under the supervision of the architect Bernardo Bautalenti. The highest level is set up as a gallery displaying exquisite works of art. Lorenzo, the third generation in power of the Medici family, had the best artistic interest. He sponsored Da Vinci, Michelangelo and other masters, and also began to collect ancient marble sculpture treasures. When Michelangelo was 14 years old, he went to Lorenzo’s palace, observed and studied a large number of artworks, and interacted with the most famous humanist scholars at that time, which made his brilliant career.

After several generations of hard work, the Uffizi Palace has become a “treasure house” for the collection of paintings, sculptures, rare treasures and even scientific instruments. In the 17th century, Cosimo III decided to build the Uffizi Palace into an art museum comparable to the Belvedere Palace in the Vatican. He ordered the commissioner to organize a centralized collection and display of artworks. After several generations of families and centuries of bequests, donations and exchanges, the collections of the Uffizi Gallery have been continuously enriched in number and type. In the 18th century, it became a cultural temple in Europe and an Italian international status symbol. In the following centuries, the Uffizi Gallery has undergone a series of “modernization” reorganizations, especially in recent years, adding a large number of masterpieces of paintings from major European countries such as the Netherlands, France, and Spain, as well as contemporary artworks from Asia, reflecting the contemporary nature. , Worldwide museum concept and vision. This monument, which showcases the historical memory of Italy and the artistic achievements of the Renaissance, continues to radiate enthusiasm for art, inspire the world‘s pursuit of beauty, and admiration and reflection on human civilization.

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However, the existence of the Uffizi Gallery today has to mention a woman——Anna Maria, who was once the elector of the Medici family (referring to the right to elect the king of Germany and the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. princes) widow. In 1737, the Medici family lost all males due to the death of her brother, and the Grand Duchy passed to Franz Stephen. Although Anna Maria is dependent on others, she has a dignified manner and never loses her dignity. She could have improved her standard of living by selling or transferring some of her property, but instead she made an astonishing decision. In 1737, when she signed the agreement to hand over the artistic heritage to the Laurena dynasty, she established some rigid clauses: “for the glory of the country”, everything is left to the state rather than private individuals; works of art must serve the “public interest” of the Florentines. ”; this inheritance shall be used to “attract the curiosity of foreigners”. This is the largest personal donation to the country, and thus gave birth to the Uffizi Gallery, the world‘s first large-scale museum of modern significance that is open to everyone.

Anna’s unprecedented decision has practiced such a modern concept: artistic heritage is a national wealth, not belonging to the ruler, and it should serve civic education; artistic heritage is also an economic resource that can promote the development of cultural tourism. At the entrance of the Uffizi Gallery, the portrait of Anna Maria is presented in the most prominent position, because she has the vision and wisdom beyond the times.

 2. Self-Portrait of a Master: Collections of the Uffizi

The Medici family once owned the largest and oldest self-portrait collection in the world. Beginning in 1800, such collections continued for centuries. Among the more than 100,000 collections of the Uffizi Gallery, there are more than 1,800 self-portraits of painters, which is second to none in the world‘s art museums. However, these works were hung discreetly in secret corridors designed by Vasari, and did not often meet with the audience.

Uffizi Gallery: Palace of Art in the

Rembrandt’s self-portrait as a young man

Since the 15th century, due to the development and application of the Venetian mirror-making industry, painters have been able to observe themselves carefully, draw pictures with themselves as the objects of depiction, and exercise their creative skills. In order to demonstrate one’s painting ability, show one’s professional identity, spread fame and accept commissions, self-portraits gradually became the type of creation that Western painters were keen on at that time. The painter usually shows his state of life and creation in self-portraits, and often faces the audience outside the painting with three-quarters of his upper body standing sideways, conveying a contemplative, melancholy, tranquil, and tranquil temperament.

Among the 50 self-portraits exhibited by the Uffizi Gallery in Shanghai, the self-portrait of Raphael is the first treasure. This painting is considered the clearest and most recognizable depiction of Raphael himself. The young painter’s haircut was typical of Renaissance court squires, and his dark hat (later called “Raphaelite”) was of the kind commonly used by painters, as was his dark robe. In short, he wears simple work clothes that intentionally suggest his profession. But he didn’t overly beautify his face. There was no high-spirited and proud expression on his face, but a bit of melancholy and sentimentality. He seemed to focus on time and foresaw his own fate of premature death. His dark eyes and elegant features confirm Vasari’s enthusiastic evaluation of the genius and master of Urbino in his “Biography of Italian Artists”-“elegant, erudite, beautiful and excellently dressed”, Vasari also admired Raphael’s perfection as an artist, and compared him with Zeuxis and Apelles, who were called the greatest painters of the classical world.

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Like much of the Uffizi collection, this painting was not originally painted in Florence. In fact, until 1652 it was placed in the last duke of Urbino, daughter of Francesco Maria II della Rovelli and Claudia de’ Medici Inside Victoria della Rovelli’s “marriage room”. The lords of Urbino wished to include Raphael’s portrait in their extensive collection, as Raphael was not only a distinguished painter but also the pride and glory of the city of his birth. Later, Victoria della Rovelli presented it to Cardinal Leopoldo de’ Medici, who created the core collection unit of the Uffizi Palace – “painted by the painter himself”. portrait”.

Rembrandt was a European painting master in the 17th century and the greatest painter in the Dutch Golden Age. Among all his portraits, self-portraits are not only amazing in number, but also have a distinctive personality, occupying an extremely important position. There are three self-portraits of Rembrandt in different age groups in the Uffizi Gallery. Through the comparison of faces, the dramatic life of the painter is shown to the world. One of them was painted in Amsterdam in 1634. The young painter carefully dressed himself up, so as to conduct a kind of analysis and research on the elements of the picture. In the work, the color and light are rich in connotations, and the imprints on the woolen cloth are depicted very realistically. The artist achieved a special flashing effect with the help of a simple throat armor and a gold necklace hanging on it; golden yellow radiates from the left side of the background The reflection of the light, in contrast with the black fedora hat, reflects the figure’s full head of blond hair and childish face, revealing gentle but firm eyes; the figure’s face is in three-quarter shadow, expressing a kind of concentration look.

In stark contrast to this high-spirited youth self-portrait is Rembrandt’s more famous self-portrait in his later years. It is said that this work is the last self-portrait of Rembrandt before his death. The painter pays great attention to the inner temperament of the face, from which the viewer can discover a potential inner language. In the picture, the painter’s body is almost facing the audience, maintaining an indestructible posture. The fur cloak he wears still reveals the glory of the past, and the gray hair is in harmony with the complexion of the face, although his face is swollen and bags under the eyes are swollen The pendant is full of old age, but firmness is revealed in the vicissitudes of life, longing is revealed in silence, and sharpness, sophistication and emptiness that penetrate the world are conveyed in the eyes. We know that at this time, the painter was already alone (his wife Hendrick died three years ago), and the continuous setbacks in life and the decline of his career caused a great blow to Rembrandt. The image of the spirit is outlined in this work.

  3. Botticelli: the ideal of Lorenzo’s time

In Florence during the Renaissance, inspired by ancient Greco-Roman marble sculptures and inspired by the humanism of the patron Lorenzo de Medici, artists re-examined art, and the central figure among them was Sandro · Botticelli (1445-1510). One of the most important painters of the Florentine school of Renaissance, with artistic genius and unique personal style, he transformed classical themes into original and new aesthetic ideals, with elegant figures, smooth lines and exquisite details , with a touch of sadness. The “Botticelli Room” is the most famous exhibition hall of the Uffizi Gallery. It displays some of Botticelli’s greatest works and is the most visited place in the gallery. Among the many paintings, there are two works that have entered the collective visual impression as the essence of the Renaissance, namely “Spring” (about 1482) and “The Birth of Venus” (about 1484).

Uffizi Gallery: Palace of Art in the

Rembrandt’s self-portrait in his later years

“Spring” is generally recognized as the most famous work of the Uffizi Gallery. This allegorical painting is inspired by Ovid’s poems, as well as Poliziano – the Medici family and Botticelli’s Friend—The Psalm. Poliziano described the three Graces and the spring breeze Zhe Feirou in the poem. In the painting, the latter is chasing the earth nymph Crowley, causing flowers to burst from her mouth; the nymph is then transformed into Flora, the goddess of spring, in a floral dress, while Venus stands in the garden, her eyes lost. lost in thought. The three goddesses of Grace dancing on the left are shot by Cupid, the little god of love. They are a metaphor for the relationship between gods and humanity. Transparent and light veils are draped over their bodies, making the dancers’ figures very moving. Botticelli abandoned any perspective technique, which made the background obtain a deep decorative effect. In the garden of Venus, the citrus trees are full of flowers and fruits, and the fragrance is attractive. The branches and leaves against the blue sky are like a blanket. A lovely watermark image. Even more stunning are the stars of flowers at the bottom – botanists have identified two hundred different species of flowers here, many of which are still blooming on the hills around Florence and in the beautiful town of Castelo. On the lawn near the Villa de Chi. Botticelli, with his unique style of delicacy and elegance, “translated” the ideal of Neoplatonism in his paintings, and presented this ideal to Florence under the rule of Lorenzo de’ Medici, Expect a return to the golden age when the highest ideals could be expressed.

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The fresh and lyrical atmosphere, the decorative picture processing, the graceful and charming female images, and the exquisite lines full of rhythm are the recognized artistic characteristics of Botticelli. In order to achieve the ideal beauty, he even did not hesitate to deform the shape of the characters, such as elongating the neck, exaggerating the proportion of hands and feet, and so on. The famous “Birth of Venus” is the best example. Botticelli was inspired by the stories of Venus in epic poems such as “Homer” and “The Metamorphosis”, and was inspired by the neo-Platonist cultural atmosphere at that time to create this masterpiece. The scenery on the screen is very mysterious, the sea is sparkling, the grass is flying all over the sky, and the light and light tones of silver light dominate the picture. Venus is in the center of the painting, standing on a huge shell, gently pushed to the shore by the wind, her posture is gently tilted, symbolizing the ideal beauty. Faint chiaroscuro light flits across her, and the goddess’ eyes and expression are sad, to reflect the ephemeral nature of all things. On the left side of the picture, Zhefei and Awula come with roses and spread their wings. This pattern is the decoration on the jewelry cup hidden by Lorenzo. , the waves undulate in the background, becoming an abstract scene. Bottiche used his brushes to convey the beauty of balance and harmony, transcending time and space, and eternal dreamlike beauty, a beauty that achieves a high degree of integration of spirit and matter. This is the ideal beauty of Lorenzo’s era and is eternal.

The Uffizi Gallery is the birthplace of Western modern museums, the art treasure house of the Renaissance, and the palace of European classical art. After entering the 20th century, this ancient art museum faces modern art with an open and inclusive attitude, and continues to increase its collection. The “Self-Portraits of Masters – Treasures of the Uffizi Gallery in Italy” exhibition in Shanghai also displayed the self-portraits of modernist artists such as Giorgio Morandi and Marc Chagall. It is worth mentioning that the works of Yayoi Kusama, the “queen of polka dots”, are also on display. Her self-portraits show the artist’s fanatical love for small polka dots, presenting an autobiographical and spiritual world that penetrates into the soul. In addition, Chinese artist Cai Guoqiang’s self-portrait “Fried Cai” also met with Chinese people in this exhibition. Cai Guoqiang showed himself in his classic “explosion” way. It can be seen that the Uffizi Gallery is still enriching its core collection of self-portraits, leaving historical faces for the progress of human civilization!

“Guangming Daily” (page 13, November 17, 2022)

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责编:丁玉冰 ]

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