Join us as we take a closer look at Giovanni della Robbia’s Resurrection of Christ (ca. 1520–25). Tag along for this virtual tour created by Lisa Small, Senior Curator, European Art.
The sculpture envisions Jesus emerging from his tomb offering salvation to the faithful. Heralded by two angels, in one hand he holds the red-cross banner representing his triumph over death and with the other makes a gesture of benediction. A lush garland of plants, flowers, and animals frames the miraculous event.
This large relief sculpture is made up of forty-six separate pieces of molded terracotta. After being fired in a kiln, each section was painted with the della Robbia workshop’s proprietary glazes, and then fired again, a technique that yielded a colorful and durable form of sculpture perfectly suited to architectural ornamentation.
The lunette, or arched shape, suggests that this work would have hung over a doorway.
Like many Renaissance artists, della Robbia was inspired by ancient Greek and Roman art. In this work, he unites classical forms with Christian symbols.
The arrangement of figures within the compressed space of the relief shows della Robbia’s familiarity with the crowded compositions carved on ancient Roman sarcophagi like this one from the Met.
Marble sarcophagus with the myth of Selene and Endymion, Roman, early 3rd century A.D.. Marble, H. 28 ½ in. Metropolitan Museum, Rogers Fund, 1947. 47.100.4a, b.
The twisted poses and emotional faces of these two soldiers echo those of the Laocoön group, an ancient sculpture unearthed in Rome in 1506 that soon became one of the most famous ancient works known in the Renaissance.
Laocoön and his sons. Roman copy in marble after a Hellenistic bronze original from ca. 200 BC., 1506, The Vatican Museums, Rome.
Here, Christ stands in the relaxed contrapposto pose frequently seen in classical sculptures of the male nude.
Della Robbia’s workshop couldn’t develop a stable glaze for red, which was the intended color of Christ’s robe and His blood. Those sections had to be covered in red paint, which has since worn off, leaving those areas looking brown.
Ultraviolet reflectance imaging reveals that della Robbia painted glaze onto Christ’s arms, chest, and abdomen to emphasize his muscles!
The hallmark leafy garland of the della Robbia workshop was also a common motif in the ancient world. It signified honor and commemoration, as well as glory and abundance.
Artist James Tissot depicted a typical ancient garland design in this sketch from the Brooklyn Museum collection of a Roman sculptural fragment he saw in 1886-1889 while traveling near Jerusalem.
The flora and fauna throughout the relief reflect the interest in the natural world that emerged during the Renaissance. These plants and animals would have been understood at the time as having symbolic meanings connected with the themes of Resurrection and faith.
Evergreen leaves, gourds, salamanders, and snails were all emblematic of rebirth, renewal, and immortality.
Frogs could also serve as symbols of the Resurrection because they appear to be “reborn” seasonally when they emerge after hibernation in the spring. The crab is the zodiac sign for Cancer, but can also be a Resurrection symbol because it sheds its shell as it grows.
This vignette of an eagle killing a snake references Christ’s triumph over Satan.
Such animal symbolism was complex and often contradictory. Although squirrels were sometimes associated with evil, they could also be positive symbols of diligence.
Della Robbia or someone in his workshop must have been particularly interested in this small creature; conservation analysis has revealed what appears to be a small preparatory sketch of a squirrel scratched into the wet clay on one of the garland tiles.
A blooming fruit tree represents Paradise and the regeneration of the world through Christ’s sacrifice.
Grapes conjure abundance as well as the wine the disciples drank at Christ’s Passover seder (otherwise known as the Last Supper!).
In this work grapes probably also allude to this praying man. Who is he and how did he get a front row seat to the Resurrection?
He is likely Niccolò di Tomasso Antinori (1454–1520), whose family coat of arms appears in the lower corners of the relief. The Antinoris were wealthy merchants and winemakers, and they commissioned della Robbia to create this work for their estate and vineyard outside Florence.
As the patron, Niccolò could emphasize his own salvation by specifying that he be included in a position of devotion right next to the Risen Christ.
Della Robbia’s Resurrection remained at the Antinori estate until 1898, when the family sold it to A. Augustus Healy, the Brooklyn Museum’s first board president.
When he gave it to the museum the next year, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle proclaimed: “Every lover of Italian art will value … this treasure.”
It hung for years in the museum’s “Renaissance Hall” but by later in the twentieth century it had gone into storage.
In 2015 it was completely conserved at the Brooklyn Museum thanks to a grant from the same Antinori family that originally commissioned it 500 years ago! Now, della Robbia’s early sixteenth-century masterpiece looks better than ever!
Thanks for joining us! Tune in next Sunday for another virtual tour of our galleries!
Installation view of The Brooklyn Della Robbia. (Photo: Jonathan Dorado)
(Source: brooklynmuseum.org)
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