GHIRLANDAIO, Domenico
(b. 1449, Firenze, d. 1494, Firenze)

Visitation (detail)

1486-90
Fresco
Cappella Tornabuoni, Santa Maria Novella, Florence

In this detail Giovanna Albizzi-Tornabuoni is standing directly underneath the arch of a classical triumphal archway flanked by columns, just as if she were the main figure in the painting. In 1486 she married Lorenzo, the son of the donor. Vasari mistakenly thought she was "Ginevra de' Benci, a most beautiful young girl living at the time", whose portrait was painted by Leonardo da Vinci about 1478. Giovanna, who is standing stiff and rigid, is shown in sharp profile, wearing a magnificent gleaming gown and has an elegant hairstyle, unapproachable in front of her companions.

The two figures stepping out through the classical gateway make it clear just how monumentally large, and how far away, the building behind them is.




© Web Gallery of Art, created by Emil Krén and Daniel Marx.