Florentine Masterpieces: The Allegory of the Immaculate Conception by Giorgio Vasari
The Allegory of the Immaculate Conception by
Giorgio Vasari is a late Renaissance masterpiece housed in the ancient
Church of Santi Apostoli. A small replica is also on display at the Uffizi. The painting, dating back to around 1541, was
commissioned by Bindo Aldoviti, a banker and patron, for his family chapel.
The composition, crossed by a serpentine movement, is
dynamic and theatrical, with a Mannerist imprint, and can be read in three main
sections.
At the bottom we find Adam and Eve, naked and twisted in plastic poses, tied to
the Tree of Knowledge. Around them are various mythological and biblical
characters: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Aaron, Joshua, David, have their
wrists tied, while Samuel and John the Baptist are tied by only one arm because
they were brought into the world by divine intervention.
At the center we see a snake-like figure representing original sin, which Mary is destined to banish.
High above the clouds, we find the protagonist of the work, Mary, flooded with light and surrounded by angels and twelve stars (the twelve apostles). She rests one foot on the head of the devil, literally overwhelmed and crushed by the Virgin, pure and foreign to original sin since her conception.
The meaning of the painting is made clear by the scrolls held by the cherubs: "Quod Evae culpa damnavit, Mariae gratia solvit" (Those who were damned by Eve's fault, are saved by Mary's merit).
The dogma of the Immaculate Conception was much discussed since the Middle Ages but not made official by the Church until 1854 with Pope Pius IX with.
The work was extremely innovative for its time, and immediately became a source of inspiration for many other artists. Characterized by contrast: in the upper part a serene and celestial atmosphere prevails, in the lower part, the earthly one, there is turmoil and anguish. A masterpiece that still fills us with wonder today.
