Art History: Lesson 3

Lippo Vanni’s painting Crucifixion with the Virgin, Saint John the Evangelist and a Clerical Donor shares similarities with many crucifixion pieces, however it also has a number of unique details that differentiate and connect it with different style periods in Medieval art.

The piece is tempera and gold leaf on poplar panel and was painted between 1350 and 1360. The entire upper background of the work is covered with this gold leaf and is rich in its' nature. The subject, just as the title suggests, is that of the crucifixion. Christ is upon the cross with Mary to his right, Saint John to his left and a donor kneeling at the lower right of the cross. Christ, the main subject of this religious work, is prominently at the center. His body is held to the cross by three nails; one through each of his hands and then a single one holding both of his overlapped feet in place. These feet rest upon a block of wood at the bottom of the cross's mound. From His feet scarlet blood flows down the mound and onto the earth beneath Him. The color scarlet is often seen to represent sin, so like any religious painting the artist added deep symbolism into this work. The blood and the S-curve of Christ’s body (which is created through the V his limp arms form as they try and hold up his dropping body) help the viewer gain a true sense of the Savior’s suffering. These attributes also serve to connect the viewer to their Savior.

Christ’s skin tone is greenish in color and his ribs and muscles protrude through while his still somewhat vibrant curly, red hair surrounds his weak face. His face is slightly tilted towards the left and his barely open eyes appear to look down towards the clerical donor. This donor likely represents all earthly Christians and the people Christ has been sent to save as his last breath nears. Christ himself, Mary and Saint John the Evangelist all have halos- which have been embedded in the gold leaf- around their heads. This is a a clear distinction the artist has created between them, the holy, and earthly people such as the Clerical Donor.

Mary and Saint John the Evangelist have also been prominently placed to both sides of Christ; they too are holy. Mary, Christ’s mother is at his right. She is dressed in a blue robe adorned with gold trim on its edges and a red garment appears from under her hooded robe which hides her hair and feet from the viewer. Her face is full of sorrow as she tilts her head away from her dying son and her eyes are squinted and droop downward to add an even greater sense of emotion. Mary’s left hand clutches a piece of her robe as her right hand makes a three finger hand gesture towards her son. Saint John, who is at Christ’s left, also captures the viewer’s attention with the gesture his arms and hands create. As his head looks up towards the Savior his hands are clenched together and his arms form a circle up in the direction which he gazes. He is dressed in a light blue robe and has a salmon colored, gold trimmed, shawl which is draped around his body and over his right shoulder. Saint John’s feet appear from under his robe, but they, especially his left, have not been rendered very naturalistically and they point upward and almost create a floating effect.

The Clerical Donor kneels to the right of the mound which the cross sits upon. The cleric's hands are crossed over his chest and his eyes are barely open as his head is slightly tilted up towards Christ his savior. He is dressed in a black and white lined robe and white, long sleeve under garment also barely appears. Compared to the other three figures the cleric is dramatically smaller in proportions. His head is about half the size of theirs and though he has a prominent place in the piece he is minuscule proving that proportion was not nearly as important as subject to the artist.

In his painting of the Crucifixion Lippo Vanni sought to commemorate one of the greatest moments in earth's history. Through details and hidden symbolism he connected his viewers to their Savior and created a work of art which we still adore today.