File:Donatello (1904) (14781370002).jpg

Identifier: donatello00meye (find matches)
Title: Donatello
Year: 1904 (1900s)
Authors: Meyer, Alfred Gotthold Konody, Paul G. (Paul George), 1872-1933
Subjects: Donatello, 1386?-1466
Publisher: Bielefeld and Leipzig : Velhagen & Klasing
Contributing Library: Harold B. Lee Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Brigham Young University

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Text Appearing Before Image:
Fig. 42. Christening-FONT. Siena. S. Giovanni. (To page 49.) not show, how St. George kills the dragon, but only how he fights him —the conqueror after the fight would have been a variation of the statueabove. But at the same time the theme he chose presented the greatestdramatic possibilities, and already on this first occasion Donatello showedthe clever narrators art of stopping short at the moment of greatest tension.The hero gallops towards the dragon; the maiden whom he wishes to setfree, stands by tremblingly. Most directly participating in the action, shealso embodies the feelings of the spectator, like the chorus in the ancientdrama. This advantage was not made use of by Raphael in his St. Georgepicture at St. Petersburg, which is clearly influenced by Donatellos work. 51 This earliest of the masters reliefs is important, however, not onlythrough its narrative art, but at least as much through its art of spacing,
Text Appearing After Image:
Fig. 43. Salome relief. Christening-font. Siena. S. Giovanni. (To page 52.) This, too, was new in Donatellos work, for until the time of the St. Georgerelief, he had only been employed on single figures for a pre-arrangedsetting and background. He had been at most instructor of the actors. 52 With this rehef he became for the first time stage-manager as well. Tobe sure, this stage is simple enough as yet: a landscape background, moresuggested by side-wings than actually executed — a cave to the left, arcadesto the right, and small trees on the horizon. But the fine perspective fore-shortening in the flat stiacciato gives to this first marble relief-picturethe effect of atmosphere and depth. And at the same time this settingintensifies the romantic sentiment of the whole scene. In this respect it isaltogether unique among Donatellos works. His power of shaping figureswas too resistless, and even his descriptive art availed itself henceforthalmost exclusively of the human figure, maki

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