Christmas Eve, and we weren't sure
what would be closed -
so we enjoyed a somewhat leisurely
morning in our well-appointed apartment
& a breakfast featuring
some yummy bread
from the "convenience" store
(not the kind of bread
an American convenience store
ever carries!)
& one scrumptious cup of coffee
at a time!
with a view from the
kitchen window
that's none too shabby
judge me not...
i like butter.
this snazzy place
had a washing machine!
(which i finally figured out
how to operate
after deciphering the
directions in Italian)
later,
we decided to check out
which we thought
might have some art,
was open on Christmas Eve,
& a fairly short walk
from our place
this ^^^ is the biscione,
the historic symbol of Milan.
it is a "grass snake"
(a rather benign derivation
of the Latin word for beast)
either eating or
giving "birth" to a human
- take your pick -
(and, in an interesting twist,
may have originated after a
bronze serpent sculpture
arrived in Milan from Constantinople
- aka Istanbul, of our
recent travels -
via the Archbishop of Milan in 998 or so)
Castello Sforzesco is an expansive complex,
with a wide central plaza
completely surrounded by
the "castle" buildings & towers,
which now house not some
but tons of art!
it is a fortress & was built as such
in the late 15th century
by Francesco Sforza,
Duke of Milan
the weather also influenced
our decision to prowl through
such an extensive art collection
(though never too cold, it was
definitely gray & drizzly!)
we, honestly, had no idea
when we started
quite how extensive the art museums
(yes, plural) were...
they kept going & going & going!
we started off in a tiny one
near the west gate entrance
(Porta de Santo Spirito
or the Gate of the Holy Spirit)
that featured some nice keepsakes,
sketches, and drawings.
by Giovanni Pichler (late 1700's)
Studio di una pecora by Francesco Londonio (1723-1783)
Studio di un piede possibly by Giulio Cesare Procaccini (1574-1625)
Volto femminile di profilo by Federico Barocci (1533-1612)
"While he is described by contemporaries
as personally somewhat morose and hypochondriacal,
his paintings are lively and brilliant."
It is said that Rubens viewed Barocci's work
& was inspired.
Il figliuol prodigo by Albrecht Durer (1471-1528)
"Initially, it was 'Turer,' meaning 'doormaker' -
which is 'ajitos' in Hungarian."
(Durer's father was originally from
the town of Ajitos, Hungary)
one of Durer's works (from age 13) is one of the
earliest surviving children's drawings of any kind
Il mostro marino by Albrecht Durer (1471-1528)
much debate regarding what specific sea monster
this drawing/etching depicts!
there were a lot of them, apparently :)
religion can be a powerful force
this statue was carved by Giovanni Dugnani
& is, it appears, of San Giovanni Nepomuceno,
the patron saint of Bohemia (Czech Republic)
and the first martyr of the Seal of the Confessional
he was drowned
due to refusal of revealing
confessionals, so
- as a saint -
protects you from the same fate
from the large plaza,
we decided to dive into another museum
with slightly older art...
Frammento di testa colossale 12th century
the baptistry is rumored to have
originally been the site of a Roman temple to Mars -
however, excavation indicates that, more likely,
a Roman wall simply ran across the location
Testa detta di David (early 13th century)
Monumento sepolcrale di Barnabo' Visconti, 14th century
"Bernabo' was a ruthless despot towards his subjects
and did not hesitate to face emperors and popes,
including Pope Urban V.
The conflict with the Church cost him
several excommunications....
Bernabo', infuriated, placed the two
papal delegates under arrest
and refused their release until
they had eaten the parchment, seal,
and silken cord with which they
had served him."
In other news, the poet Chaucer
describes Bernabo' as a
"god of delit and scourge of Lumbardye"
i was halfway through a video
of the entire thing,
when a guard politely told me
"nope" - only photos!
I Re Magi 12th-13th century
dalle sostruzioni di un pilastro del Duomo
one supposes there was a restoration
which necessitated the removal of this part
of a pillar from the Milan Duomo...
an initial architect of the cathedral
& may (or more likely not)
be the artist of this depiction
of the Three Wise Men / Kings
Modanatura architettonica con figura di mostro,
end of 12th century
dal chiostro del soppresso
Radegunde, in a twist reminiscent of the Sultans
in my previous posts,
married King Clotaire I, having been captured as "booty" in 531
during war with her father, another Germanic/Frank king.
after Clotaire killed Radegunde's brother
(and only remaining relative),
Radegunde abandoned Clotaire
& took her vows
(interestingly, in the same monastery
to which her mother-in-law retreated...
there appears to be a pattern here)
by a master craftsman c. 1310-1320 Madonna col Bambino
(& just a little bit about Catholicism in the 1300s
"The myth of a radical renewal was transformed into
the myth of the ancient world and of its superior dignity.")
Mary is everywhere!
(with her starry blue robe
symbolizing the heavens)
stained glass windows
from the Ducal Court
within Sforza Castle
this room had a temporary exhibit,
of which this statue (butt) was part
during our time in Milan
(and, later, in Parma),
we frequently encountered
images of Madonna Lactans
later discouraged via the Council of Trent
in the mid-1500's
La Madonna con due santi 15th century
Altorilievo con la Pieta' by Gasparo Cairano
(second half of 15th century)
La Pieta' or The Lamentation
typically shows Mary supporting and mourning
Jesus' dead body, and i suppose
the figure on the left with the hood
could be a quite haggard-looking Mary
Madonna col bambino (second half of 15th century)
this is such a sweet one,
with Jesus actually looking
more like an infant
than a miniature adult -
and Mary gazing down at him
rather than into the distance
Angeli from the school of Giovanni Antonio Amadeo
& another angel (below)
i have a thing for angels
(as a figurative concept)
Ante con statue di santi - Pietro Bussolo
(end of 15th / beginning of 16th century)
a lovely wooden carving!
Adoration of the Shepherds
1495-1500
i think the translation would be
The Donati Brothers' Workshop
Adoration of the Child - Bottega Fratelli de Donati - c. 1495
Madonna, Child, & Angels - Benedetto Bembo, c. 1462
St. John the Baptist - Vincenza Foppa c. 1488-89
Mary Magdalene - Giovanni Angelo del Maino c. 1520-30
as part of the Lamentation...very powerful
The Archangel Michael Trampling on the Devil
by Hans (Johann) Rottenhammer, c. 1595-1600
(quite a subdued trampling, really)
Busto del duca Ottavio Farnese by Annibale Fontana (1540-1587)
i was mostly captivated by the gasping face
on his chest, but Farnese's nose
is pretty awesome, too
(we re-encountered the Farnese family
in a few days when we explored Parma)
there were a few outliers
that caught my eye,
such as this devil automaton
Automaton from 16th-17th century
(Leonardo da Vinci may have exhibited
an automaton at the Court of Milan in 1495)
we dipped into one last exhibit,
that ended up being rather uninteresting
modern black-and-white photography...
but the coat stand was great!
run, run, as fast as you can!
there were parts of these museums
that we didn't even get to
- furniture and decorative arts,
for example -
but one last work of art
to share with you
(that is undergoing restoration)
is the Sala delle Asse
Room of the Tower or
Hall of Wooden Planks
(which is oddly specific),
in which
Leonardo da Vinci
painted plants, trees, rocks, & roots
as an illusion of being within
a grove of mulberry trees
just one short year later, in 1499,
Milan was captured by the French
&, eventually, the walls and ceiling
were painted white & the artwork forgotten.
during restoration in 1893,
traces of the art were discovered
and restored, with other restorations
undertaken in the 1950s and a current
renovation starting in 2012.
there was one more exhibit
that we spent some time in
before departing Castle Sforza,
and it deserves its own post -
so you'll have to wait
to find out what that is!
