Sermon to the Birds

Sermon to the Birds, also known as St Francis Preaching to the Birds, is a religiously inspired artwork by Giotto di Bondone.

Story behind the Sermon

St Francis delivers this sermon to the birds, and reminds them to speak proudly and positively about the lord. The birds swoop in to listen to his words, attentively grouped close-by.

Oh birds, my brothers and sisters, you have a great obligation to praise your Creator, who clothed you in feathers and gave you wings to fly with, provided you with pure air and cares for you without any worry on your part.

From this sermon onwards, St Francis would speak to other birds, animals and more to teach them to be grateful for their creation, and to thank the lord for this. Narratives such as this remind us that God did not only create humanity, but also everything else in the world.

Commissions in Assisi

Sermon to the Birds was part of Giotto’s work in Assisi, where he focused on scenes from the life of St Francis. He constructed twenty five in total, of the twenty eight dedicated to this saint, though he also worked on other projects within the same church.

Giotto had two clear periods of work in Assisi, taking on both the upper and lower churches at different points in his career - there was a gap of several decades between the two projects. Many of the subjects that he covered here would also re-appear in other work elsewhere in Italy, where donors were impressed with his previous versions and wanted something similar for themselves.

The artist’s work in Assisi remains amongst the highlights of his entire career, with both series of works being highly regarded.

Composition

The composition of Sermon to the Birds featuring Saint Francis with an outstretched arm, pointing directly towards the birds who gather close-by. They are mainly focused on his words, standing beneath a healthy looking tree which overhangs above from the right hand side.

A colleague of the saint stands besides him, perhaps in awe at proceedings as he sees Saint Francis enchant these birds with his words. This important story reminds us of the importance of birds and animals to God, and that we should continue to care for them as well as appreciating their existence.

The foliage around the tree is also healthy and green, with bushy leaves which is noticeably different to some of his other versions, such as in Lamentation. Giotto would adapt the condition of his foliage to match the mood of the painting, and in this example we find a relatively upbeat work in which the birds are taught by St Francis to appreciate all that they have, and to thank the lord for it.

Conclusion

We can conclude that Sermon to the Birds is a relatively simple composition by the standards of Giotto within his work in Assisi, but still nonetheless significant. The connection between human and bird is enchanting, and Giotto works hard to bring the life of Saint Francis to us all, by carefully choosing key moments from his influential life.

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