252. Paolo Uccello, (1397-1475), Italian,

Equestrian Portrait of Sir John Hawkwood, 1436.

Fresco transferred to canvas, 732 x 404 cm.

Basilica Santa Maria del Fiore, Florence.

 

 

Paolo Uccello

(1397 Florence – 1475 Florence)

 

Paolo di Dono was called ‘Uccello’ because he loved birds and the Italian word for bird is uccello. As well as painting on panel and in fresco, he was also a master of mosaics, especially in Venice, and produced designs for stained glass. We can feel the influence of Donatello especially in a fresco representing the Flood and the Recession, whereas the figures in this work is reminiscent of Masaccio’s frescos of Brancacci chapel. His perspectives studies are very sophisticated, akin to the Renaissance art treatises of Piero della Francesca, da Vinci or Dürer. He was a major proponent of the Renaissance style. However, if his masterwork The Battle of San Romano (1438-40) has Renaissance elements, Uccello’s gold decorations on the surface of his masterpieces are indebted to the Gothic style.