Gates of Paradise
by Ivete Basso Photography
Title
Gates of Paradise
Artist
Ivete Basso Photography
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
Gates of Paradise from Florence, Italy. The gate had ten panels depicting scenes from the Old Testament, and were in turn installed on the east side. The panels are large rectangles and are no longer embedded in the traditional Gothic quatrefoil, as in the previous doors. Ghiberti employed the recently discovered principles of perspective to give depth to his compositions. Each panel depicts more than one episode. In "The Story of Joseph" is portrayed the narrative scheme of Joseph Cast by His Brethren into the Well, Joseph Sold to the Merchants, The merchants delivering Joseph to the pharaoh, Joseph Interpreting the Pharaoh's dream, The Pharaoh Paying him Honour, Jacob Sends His Sons to Egypt and Joseph Recognizes His Brothers and Returns Home. According to Vasari's Lives, this panel was the most difficult and also the most beautiful. The figures are distributed in very low relief in a perspective space (a technique invented by Donatello and called rilievo schiacciato, which literally means "flattened relief".) Ghiberti uses different sculptural techniques, from incised lines to almost free-standing figure sculpture, within the panels, further accentuating the sense of space.
Gates of Paradise situated in the Baptistry Di San Giovanni are a copy of the originals, substituted in 1990 to preserve the panels after over five hundred years of exposure and damage. To protect the original panels for the future, the panels are being restored and kept in a dry environment in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, the museum of the Duomo's art and sculpture. Some of the original panels are on view in the museum; the remaining original panels are being restored and cleaned using lasers in lieu of potentially damaging chemical baths.
One of the few copies made in the 1940s is installed in Grace Cathedral, in San Francisco.
FEATURED BY:
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Uploaded
July 25th, 2013
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Comments (19)
Kandy Hurley
Amazing reliefs and I enjoyed reading the description good news i'm in and out of SF often so I'll check out the copies!...v
Ivete Basso Photography replied:
Thanks, Kandy. Appreciate very much your nice comment and your Vote. Thanks for like the description. I thinking is a good to have a description about the places...
Ivete Basso
Thanks, Tessa. Appreciate your nice comment and V/F. The Panels is so beautiful!! Lot of Art.
Anne-Elizabeth Whiteway
Dear Ivete, This is an awesome image. Glad you found this. Wow, the description with this is very informative and interesting. Hope you are having a happy day. F/V
Al Bourassa
I have never heard of these. Great find! V/F
Ivete Basso Photography replied:
Thanks, Al. Appreciate your nice comment and your V/F. The Gates of Paradise is in the front of Basilica of Santa Maria del Fiori, Florence.
Christiane Schulze
Wonderful capture Ivete .....you where lucky you got it without people - thanks for your congrats - Chris (F/V/T/G+)
Ivete Basso Photography replied:
Thanks, Christiane. Appreciate your nice comment and V/F and more...Is not essay, take lot of time...Need to have a lot of patience ...