Easter Story

 

Detail from Giotto's "Lamentation"

As Easter approaches, I want to share some beautiful frescoes depicting events of Holy Week. I have chosen frescoes by Giotto  de Bondone from the Scrovegni Chapel in Padua, Italy. Giotto told the story of Christ's passion with a series of unforgettable frescoes. As you follow the story in a series of panels along the walls of the Chapel, you can't help but experience an emotional build-up, and an increasingly tragic tone.

Giotto, "Kiss of Judas"

Giotto, "Kiss of Judas" detail

Giotto was a early Renaissance painter, whose work marks a clear shift from the prior Byzantine style. Before Giotto, paintings tended to depict people in a one-dimensional, highly stylized, static way. The looked like flat cut-outs. But in the hands of Giotto, the figures become human. They are modeled in three dimensions, and their expressions are full of emotion. One critic has written that you can almost hear the sobs of the women and shrieks of the angels in these frescoes of the Passion. 

Giotto, "Crucifixion"

From Judas' betrayal of Christ, to the crucifixion and resurrection, we see masterpieces of Renaissance art. The  emotion of the characters is almost palpable. These frescoes were painted over seven hundred years ago (yes, seven hundred!!), but their appeal is timeless. And the Easter story that they tell--the victory of life over death--is as powerful today was it was two thousand years ago.

Giotto, "Lamentation"

It would not be an exaggeration to say that each fresco warrants hours of study. The overall harmony of the ensemble is marvelous, but I think that the details of certain characters and expressions are equally compelling. I am including close-up images from several of the panels. Any one of these, standing alone, would be a master work. The entirety makes for a very rich feast. Notice the bare little tree on the right in the fresco just above ("Lamentation"). The tiny green buds on it are said to symbolize the coming resurrection. And of course, we can't end with the crucified Christ--the focus of Easter is the triumph of the resurrection!

Giotto, "Resurrection and Noli me tangere"

I love this resurrection fresco, which combines a scene from the empty tomb with the scene of Jesus' appearance to Mary Magdalene. On the left, the Roman guards sleep at the tomb, and two angels sit nearby. On the right, the risen Jesus appears to Mary Magddalene. The flag carried by Jesus reads "victor mortis", or "conqueror of death".  Hallelujah!  Happy Easter!