Description

In this painting, Silvia Salvadori wanted to pay homage the great Sienese artist Duccio di Buonisegna performing numerous studies and drawings of the faces of the characters depicted in the great altarpiece, the Majesty of the Duomo of Siena. The face of the Arcade painted by Silvia Salvadori presents a typical incarnate of the painting of the cousin. Subtle color filaments intertwine in transparency creating delicate shades of color. Great emphasis was given to the decorations of the brocade in gold pluck, obtained with punch and scratch on gold and present throughout the neck. Geometries of pure gold and color make this work a precious jewel. Silvia Salvadori has used the best pigments used in ancient times, among which for this work is a beautiful Afghan blue lapis lazuli of the highest quality.   History: The Majesty was painted by the Sienese artist for the cathedral of Siena between 1308 and 1311. The work represents the artistic maturity achieved by Duccio and is considered one of the most important paintings of Italian Renaissance art.  The Majesty is currently preserved at the Opera Museum of the Cathedral in Siena. It is a large two-faceted altarpiece (measures 425x212 cm). At the front stand the Virgin Mary and Child on the throne, surrounded by a dense array of angels on a gold background.  The four patron saints of Siena (Sant'Ansano, San Savino, San Crescenzo and San Vittore) are recognized in the foreground, while on the two exterior side there are two Virgin protectors: St. Agnes and St Catherine from Alexandria, painted from sumptuous golden brocade dresses. Near the Virgin Mary, in the background, we find St. Paul and St. Evangelist on the left, St. John the Baptist and St. Peter on the right. At the top stands a host of winged angels.  On the top we find some stories of the childhood of Christ with the protagonist Virgin Mary and the stories of the Prophets. Many parts have been dismembered over the centuries and some of the survivors can be seen at the National Gallery of London (Annunciation), Washington, National Gallery of Art, New York, Frick Collection (Temptation on the Mount), Madrid , Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum (Meeting with the Samaritan) and other foreign museums.  The fame of this grandiose work is already attested by the chronicles of time depicting a great procession of people in his honor. It is a distinguished civilian and religious character, a symbol of the Sienese people.  The large table was richly decorated in the back and divided into two overlapping bands, where the Passion of Christ is depicted in the twenty-sixth panels, from the Entrance to Jerusalem to the Resurrection. The forefront was represented by steps of the New Testament, the birth of Jesus and the Assumption of the Virgin in Heaven.  In the original work of the great master, there are Byzantine and Gothic elements combined with a unique perfection of details and numerous decorative elements of French taste (brocade dresses).