Ghirlandajo, Church of Sta. Maria Novella, Florence
Photo. Alinari.
Plate 30.—Detail from Fresco, Birth of the Virgin
Ghirlandajo, Church of Sta. Maria Novella, Florence
CHAPTER IX
FRESCOS BY ANDREA DEL SARTO, LUINI, G. FERRARI, RAFFAELLE AND MICHAEL ANGELO
In the anterior court of the Church of the Santissima Annunziata, in Florence, there are five fairly well-preserved frescos by Andrea del Sarto (1488-1530). In the same court there are others painted by his pupils, and contemporary artists. The best of the five by Andrea is the “Death of St. Filippo,” where a young man is raised to life by the dead body of the saint. The colouring is very strong and luminous, and has the soft melting character of the various tones into each other, which distinguishes the work of this painter, more especially seen in his easel pictures. The next fresco in importance of this series is that which represents the miracles wrought by the robes of St. Filippo, where children are healed by touching his garments. The colouring of this painting is lively and fresh, and the effect of light and shade is a very important feature in the work. The backgrounds of these frescos, whether architectural or landscape, are at present exceedingly light in tone, which either means that these parts have faded or have been destroyed by cleaning. This causes the figures to look completely out of tone with the pale backgrounds.