Pacino di Bonaguida

[English page]

Pacino di Bonaguida was one of the most active artists in Florence in the first half of the 14th century. He produced altarpieces, large crucifixes, stained glass, and smaller scale devotional paintings and dominated the market for illuminated manuscripts in the city, decorating luxury choir books, liturgical manuscripts, and some of the earliest illustrated copies of Dante's Divine Comedy.

The Crucifixion, about 1315–20, Pacino di Bonaguida. Tempera and gold leaf on panel. 32 x 17 1/2 in. (81.2 x 44.5 cm). Fondazione di Studi di Storia dell'Arte Roberto Longhi di Firenze

http://www.getty.edu/art/exhibitions/florence/introduction.html

Pacino's art demonstrates a great interest in storytelling and narrative detail, and his often-naturalistic figures reflect Giotto's influence. Above all, Pacino was an iconographic innovator, illustrating unprecedented subjects and introducing new details into traditional scenes.

 

This emotion-filled scene of Christ's crucifixion stands out dramatically against a solid black background that suggests the biblical description of the hours before his death when "there was darkness over the whole earth." This feature is highly unusual during this period, and it indicates Pacino's innovative approach to this popular subject matter, which he treated on numerous occasions. It also expresses the artist's mastery of storytelling and his understanding of the theological meaning of the events he depicted.

Pacino was also an accomplished manuscript illuminator. In the image below, the monumental and radiant figure of Christ turns to bless the Virgin Mary, who kneels in prayer before him on the opposite page (not seen here). The grand scale of the figures in this manuscript—just over 1 1/2 feet high— is highly unusual in manuscript illumination; they recall the substantial figures more typically found in panel painting, as in the work of Pacino's contemporaries Giotto and Bernardo Daddi (see images above).

Christ Enthroned, about 1335–40, Pacino di Bonaguida. From Carmina regia: The Address of Prato to Robert of Anjou (text in Latin) by Convenevole da Prato. Tempera, gold leaf, and ink on parchment, 18 13/16 x 13 1/2 in. (47.7 x 34.2 cm). The British Library, London. Image © The British Library Board (Royal Ms. 6 E IX, fol. 4v)

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This illumination is in a manuscript commissioned by the city of Prato to be presented as a gift to King Robert of Naples (Robert of Anjou) as a plea for his protection from the encroachment of Florence, which was seeking to expand and incorporate surrounding towns. The lines of the poetic text are creatively woven through and around the painted images, encouraging careful reading and contemplation.