St Paul

The gifted artist, Massacio was a brilliant Renaissance who portrayed a multitude of biblical figures and stories adding to the social knowledge of the Roman civilization

The artist is well known for his stunning Renaissance paintings that illustrate incredible colour and form.

The incredible painting of Saint Paul is a tempera on wood altarpiece that was created for a chapel in Pisa, Italy. The artist was commissioned by a chapel to illustrate the painting for the church to be showcased as the focal point of the building. He was also commissioned to create another alter piece alongside the mural of St. Paul, titled Crucifixion.

These brilliant artworks adding to the affluence of the church, bringing it a prestigious title and gaining more support by the bear by community. The stunning technique illustrated through the artwork showcases MasaccioÕs growing artistry as he is able to adapt to more styles.

At the time, many paintings by other artists focused on a flat surface where the figures were only two-dimensional. Masaccio was one of the first founding artists who introduced the style of three-dimensional paintings by contouring the sides of the artwork. As evident through the portrait of St. Paul, the critics are able to witness the darkening shades used around the perimeter of the SaintÕs silhouette in order to showcase depth.

This captivating technique earned the artist the title as the founding father of Renaissance art as he used new techniques throughout his artwork. This beautiful portrayal of art allowed for Masaccio to illustrate the figures in his artwork with even more detail, while bringing their presence to life.

Saint Paul stands within the artwork in an upright position as his head turns to the side of the viewerÕs gaze. He holds a large sword within his right arm that is painted in a. Lack colour and leans against his body. Within his other hand, he holds a small black book lined with gold pages that strongly resemble a bible. The Saint stares off into the distance as his facial expression resembles a man pondering a difficult question.

Masaccio illustrated his facial features in much more detail than he showcased characters within his other work. He uses a deep bronzed shade to contour his face, whiling using a golden colour to illuminate the areas in which the light shines upon the skin. His hair is coloured in a rich brown colour that unifies with the warm tone colour scheme used throughout the artwork.

The captivating essence of the artwork is the way in which the colour melt into one another. As all of the shades are based on warm tones; golds, oranges, and browns swirl throughout the artwork gently blending into one another. While the orange colour of his attire seizes the focal colour of the artwork, settle hints of gold and bronze cover it while blending into the gold background of the artwork.

The gold colour is captured within each element within the artwork, illuminating the presence of the Saint and the significance of the portrait. Masaccio had illustrated an aurora around St. Paul's head to showcase his holy status, while it blends into the background of the artwork. The gold background arches in a classic Renaissance architectural form, showcasing the construction of the canvas.

While the gold holds as the main background colour of the painting, the artist transitions into white at the arch, later paired with glimpses of green. While green is a cool shade, the settle use of it does not over power the warm gold colour scheme used throughout the artwork. The gifted technique of Masaccio illustrates the artist's impeccable understand of colour as he mixed these brilliant shades together.