My Favorite Artworks at Basilica Santuario Santo Stefano, Bologna

Basilica Santuario Santo Stefano, the oldest church in Bologna, was very atmospherically evocative and romantic, and the many unique artefacts in its often darkish chambers added much allure. 

The artwork left the strongest impression on me was a small plate of relief on the exterior of its nave, featuring three primitive looking figures with haloed heads resembling astronauts' in headgear, and  stiffly raised hands sending signals of warning or blessing. The central figure, the only seated one, held a commanding upright staff with a cross top, which dissected the plate into two uneven parts, lending some dynamism to this restrained tableau. These rigid figures, perhaps Jesus and his disciples, in their strange garbs, along with their enormous and somewhat stunned eyes, formed a society beyond our worldly reach.



My second favorite was a fresco painting of some wild or domestic animals accented with some scrolls, like an early day almanac, whose pale inviting atmosphere, coloration, and the wonderful sense of continuity and unity were particularly appealing.




My Favorite Museum Collection Series
>> My Favorite Museum Collection Series 121: My Favorite Paintings at Palazzo D'Accursio (Palazzo Comunale), Bologna
<< My Favorite Museum Collection Series 119: My Favorite Monuments at Il palazzo dell'Archiginnasio, Bologna

List of My Favorite Artworks in the Museums I've Visited

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My Favorite Paintings at Basilica di Sant'Antonio, Padova (Padua), Italy

The great Basilica di Sant'Antonio in Padua, famed for its relics of Saint Anthony, houses some wonderful artworks underneath its almost Byzantinesque domes.

My favorite of such was the great altar, which dazzled with brilliant blue, yellow, white, red, and gold hues.  A bit kitschy from distance, perhaps; but on the spot, I was quite easily transported by the mysterious shimmering light.



My second favorite was a fragmented mural, with cleanly delineated figures, animals and walled city, evoking the ideal of early Renaissance epoch - urbane, sophisticated, refined and pure.




My Favorite Museum Collection Series
>> My Favorite Museum Collection Series 113: My Favoritate Paintings at Battistero, Padova (Padua), Italy
<< My Favorite Museum Collection Series 111: My Favorite Frescos at Cappella degli Scrovegni and Musei Civici degli Eremitani in Padova (Padua)

List of My Favorite Artworks in the Museums I've Visited

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Basilica di San Petronio and San Domenico in Bologna

Basilica di San Petronio on the central square of Bologna, Piazza Maggiore, was the main church of the city, and "is the fifteenth largest church in the world, stretching for 132 meters in length and 66 meters in width, while the vault reaches 45 meters inside and 51 meters in the facade." [source: wikipedia]

Near the end of our 2012 Austria and Italy trip, we stayed in Bologna for three nights, near Piazza Maggiore, therefore I was able to admire the impressive structure several times a day.  When we were in Bologna, this Basilica's front façade was covered due to renovation or repair after an earthquake shook Italy in May that year; however, we were able to have a facsimile of the façade, due to full-scale reproduced images printed on huge screens or curtains hanging in front of the church.











The dominant characteristics of this church was its symmetrical feature of the front and its rough-hewed sheer massiveness.  Proud, solid, and without vanity.







The Palazzo D'Accursio (Palazzo Comunale) by Piazza Maggiore and the adjacent Fontana del Nettuno provided wonderful vantage points and backdrops for this massive church:


Basilica di San Petronio (right) and Sanctuary of Santa Maria della Vita (domed building) viewed from Palazzo D'Accursio (Palazzo Comunale)


Palazzo D'Accursio (Palazzo Comunale) and Basilica di San Petronio


Fontana del Nettuno, Piazza del Nettuno, and Basilica di San Petronio

However, in order to fully gauge the massiveness of this structure, it would be the best to approach it from the back where other "modern" buildings helped viewers to scale the Basilica.  Moreover, some exposed bricks lent a feeling of a rugged fortress.


Basilica di San Petronio, Bologna





But this Basilica was not just muscular strength.  At the foot of the building, one could admire the elegantly proportioned and decorated arched loggia.  It was simply beautiful.



By the time we were leaving Italy, huge scaffolding sprouted up overnight in front of Basilica di San Petronio, and it was apparently that a large event was being planned.  Definitely this spot was the beating heart of this pulsating city.

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Basilica San Domenico was another major church in Bologna, with its significance as the burial church of Saint Dominic, founder of the Order of Preachers (Dominicans), whose remains were buries inside the "exquisite shrine Arca di San Domenico, made by Nicola Pisano and his workshop, Arnolfo di Cambio and with later additions by Niccolò dell'Arca and the young Michelangelo." [source: wikipedia]

At the entrance to the compound, a sculpture of St. Dominic on tall pedestal greeted people; with his outstretched arms, his compassion was palpable.





The interior of the Basilica was at once spare and sumptuous, with the typical Italian Renaissance muted color scheme and pleasing proportion in general but became more ornate and even in the Baroque style around the shrine for St. Dominic.





Arca di San Domenico (lower left)



One of the coolest features of this Basilica was the carved wooden chairs in the choir, each of them featured a scene from the Bible.



The paintings below continued more flamboyant coloration and compositions and even the monochromatic relief were more florid and less austere.  Such juxtaposition of styles did not create chaos; rather they created variations and drama.









Finally it was the same comforting St. Dominic who bid visitors farewell and concluded the visit with the right chord.





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Label: Italy, Austria and Italy Trip 2012

San Giorgio Maggiore, Il Redentore, Scuola e Chise Grande di San Rocco, Venezia

The best place to view the magical Piazza San Marco in Venice is the Isola di San Giorgio, such as the above picture, taken from the tower of Basilica San Giorgior Maggiore in the island, which, in turn, offered a wonderful for people standing in the Piazza looking out towards the lagoon:



It was a short vaporetto (Little Steamer, water bus) ride from Venice to Isola di San Giorgio, and upon approaching, the imposing San Giorgio Maggiore, designed by the famed architect Andrea Palladio, became hugely exciting:



In contrast to the often extravagant image of the city, churches in Venice were often austere without and within.  The typical cleanliness of the lines and color schemes of Palladio made those churches pure and purifying.



San Giorgio Maggiore boasted some wonderful paintings, such as Last Supper and The Fall of Manna by the great Jacopo Tintoretto:


Last Supper by the great Jacopo Tintoretto





The Fall of Manna by the great Jacopo Tintoretto



Yet, what left me the greatest impressions were the fantastic curved wood bas-reliefs decorating the choir, relating stories from the Bible:




From the tower, one could also have a nice view of the cloister and its labyrinth below:

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Not far from San Giorgio Maggiore, there was another island, Giudecca, and on which the impressive church, Il Redentore, again, designed by Palladio:





The small dome and the understated circular trimming at the base of the dome gave the space an elegant air; however, the pureness and openness of such space were slightly disturbed by a massive golden crown above the crucifix. Impressive surely but a bit too oppressively rich and earthly:





The weirdest thing in Il Redentore was their little sacristy, which contained many heads in a glass domes, of the size of old styled table clock.  It was hard to tell if those were the preserved heads of some saints or just replicas of the holy relics.  A little research resulted in this verdict: "The sacristy also contains a series of wax heads of Franciscans made in 1710." So, they were not as creepy as they seemed.

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In Venice, the most unforgettable church after Basilica di San Marco, was Scuola e Chise Grande di San Rocco (left: Scuola, right: Chise), more precisely, the amazing paintings by Jacopo Tintoretto inside the Scuola.


Scuola (left) e Chise (right) Grande di San Rocco





"Between 1565 and 1567, and again from 1575 to 1588, Tintoretto produced a large number of paintings for the walls and ceilings of the Scuola Grande di San Rocco.

In 1564 the painter Tintoretto was commissioned to provide paintings for the Scuola, and his most renowned works are to be found in the Sala dell'Albergo and the Sala Superiore. All the works in the building are by him, or his assistants, including his son Domenico: they were executed between 1564 and 1587. Works in the sala terra are in homage to the Virgin Mary, and concentrate on episodes from her life. In the sala superiore, works on the ceiling are from the Old Testament, and on the walls from the New Testament. Together, they show the biblical story from Fall to Redemption." [source: wikipedia]






The Annunciation from the Tintoretto cycle, Image courtesy of Wikicommons by
Web Gallery of Art


The Circumcision of Jesus from the Tintoretto cycle,  Image courtesy of Wikicommons by
http://germany.intofineart.com/usa/oil-painting-picture-32700-Tintoretto-The%20Circumcision.html


Miracle of the Bronze Serpent from the Tintoretto cycle, Image courtesy of Wikicommons by
Web Gallery of Art

The sheer immensity of those paintings, both the dimensions and numbers, overwhelmed me and the stupefying experience was not unlike the visit to the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican.  My view of Tintoretto increased dramatically since that visit.


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Label: Italy, Austria and Italy Trip 2012