Formal Analysis of an Early Italian Renaissance Art Piece

The Italian Renaissance marked a period of great cultural change and bridged the transition from Medieval art to Early Modern in Europe. Artists that emerged during this time period had a lot of medieval influence and it wasn’t until the end of the fourteenth century that new styles started to develop. Paolo Uccello was an emerging artist that broke ground with the pioneering use of perspective within paintings. An apprentice to sculptor Lorenzo Ghiberti at an early age, Uccello was greatly influenced by his narrative style. Paolo was also close friends with artist and sculptor Donatello, who also influenced his style specifically within visual perspective.
Uccello was born in Pratovecchio Italy in 1397 and was a great Italian painter and mathematician. He is well known for his use of visual perspective, used to create a feeling of depth within his works. The Battle of San Romano is one of his best known works and is actually a panel of three separate paintings. While other artists during this time were depicting images that represented classical realism within their works, Paolo Uccello’s work did not and definitely stood out. Paolo does depict images in his paintings through the use of Realism, but emphasizes different points within his works, such as color and texture. The Battle of San Romano is considered by most art historians as one of the leading works in the development of linear perspective.
When looking at detail of Paolo Uccello’s The Battle of San Romano, there are many different aspects that are quite interesting. To understand the formal elements of this piece, the historical context behind it is highly relevant. This Battle took place between the Sienese and Florentine people in the year of fourteen thirty-two. It is said that these three panels were most likely commissioned by Lionardo Bartolini Salimbeni who; “ led the Florentine governing Council of Ten during the war against Lucca and Siena” (Cothren & Stokstad, 593). Royal patronage was a major factor in the Italian Renassiance, and because of this a lot of paintings were not only influenced before they were completed by also after. It is said that they were commissioned at the time of Salimbeni’s wedding, suggested by fertility symbols incorporated into the piece and consisting of bushes of oranges, roses, and pomegranates seen in the first panel, Niccolo Mauruzi da Tolentino at the Battle of San Romano.
In the first panel of this triptych, modernly sometimes called the London painting because of its current location, the viewer focuses centrally on Niccolo da Tolentino. Tolentino is shown in a large hat patterned with both gold and red coloring, mostly red. This is significant in the previously mentioned style of Uccello, to incorporate rich and sometimes unpredictable colors and texture. The viewer also sees in the foreground to the right of Tolentino, a dead soldier and a couple of broken lances. These lances and solider are said to be very carefully aligned in order to create a certain visual perspective that Paolo Uccello was known for constructing. The broken lances seem to point towards the vanishing point of this certain panel, something which Uccello was extremely concerned with. It was said by previous mentors and artists that sometimes he would stay up all night trying to depict this device carefully.
Also seen here, the central soldier that supposedly depicts Tolentino, has few protective gear on him and evokes a more festive and almost playful image. The young boy located behind Niccolo Tolentino also doesn’t wear a helmet or anything and in fact what is detailed is his long boyish hair. Paolo Uccello has depicted a scene here that is suggestive of a carnival like moment. Also complementary to this idea is the enormous white horse that Tolentino sits atop, which looks more similar to a show horse then one you would take into battle. Paolo Uccello seems to depict a triptych series that expresses more playful and bulbous features of a battle. Between these aspects and that of the visual perspective that Uccello has created within this series, shows the different formal elements that this artist was known for. However, despite having a small following of initial support, Uccello was a pioneering artist in this sense.