Giotto introduces figures with more emotion that interact with one another and tell a defined story. Francis of Assisi Receiving Stigmata” is not actually the last Byzantine painting ever painted but it is the beginning of the end for this art style. If you have seen one Byzantine painting then you’ve seen them all which is why I admittedly celebrate the last one ever painted. You can easily identify Byzantine art as it heavily relies on gold leaf as see above. The art style relies on “stiff” figures who lack emotion. If you are familiar with the Byzantine art style you may agree that it can be a little boring.
Giotto di Bondone | 1295 -30 | Tempura on Wood | Denon Wing, Room 708
A God who knows how to come back from the dead and who knows how to raise us up from the dead also.Wikicommons – Giotto di Bodone – Jaconde Database The Christian can still get out of bed, and even sing because, in addition to the realities of human frailty, we also affirm the reality of a God who always has one more move. “Checkmate”, said the scribe to the Pharisee as they watched Jesus, the King of the Jews breathe His last on the cross outside Jerusalem. They also tend to enjoy the longest lifespan and are less likely to flounder in destructive escapist lifestyles or final despair than the general population.Īdd to that the fact that followers of Jesus are among the world’s most persecuted people group, and one wonders how they even get out of bed.įaced with the same real, everyday problems as everybody else in the world, and then some, the Christian man or woman continues to stand and flourish. Realities that also affirm the final judgment and an eternal afterlife.Īnd yet, such people are among the happiest, healthiest people. Realities that affirm that we live in a dangerous world, that we are vulnerable, frail and weak, and that we die. Of all the people who should be freaking out and drowning their sorrows in inebriating and mind-numbing intoxication, it should be those who have a firm and fixed belief in the terrifying realities laid out in the Bible. Ever since Adam bit the apple our world has had those willing to stand up and declare some kind of victory.īut such bold statements have never bothered the Church or the Christian. What do all these famous thinkers have in common? They all predicted or announced the death of God or Christianity. Nietzsche, Randi, Harris, Lennon, Stalin, Gervais, Jimmy Carr, Dawkins, Hegel and Bertrand Russell. “We have to contact the painter,” the chess champion says. “There’s one more move.” He runs to his friend and together they look at the painting. The chess champion stares and stares at the chessboard, then suddenly steps back, flabbergasted. But the second man, an international chess champion, wants to look at the painting longer, so he waves his friend on and tells him he will catch up later. The first man looking at the painting wants to move on to other paintings in the gallery. The title of the painting, “Checkmate,” indicates that the game is over. The devil is grinning ear-to-ear because he has the man cornered. In the painting, a man is playing chess with the devil. Two men are walking through an art gallery admiring a famous painting by Friedrich Moritz August Retzsch called, “Checkmate”.