Comparison of Masaccios The Holy Trinity and Grunewalds The Isenheim

Comparison of Masaccios The Holy Trinity and Grunewalds The Isenheim Altarpiece The Holy Trinity by Masaccio was a painting done in approximately 1428. It is a glorious example of Masaccios use of space and perspective. It consists oftwo levels of unequal height. Christ is represented on the top half, in acoffered, barrel-vaulted chapel. On one side of him is the virginal Mary,and on the other, St. John. Christ himself is supported by God the Father,and the Dove of the Holy Spirit rests on Christs halo. In front of thepilasters that enframe the chapel kneel the donors (husband and wife).Underneath the communion table (a masonry insert in the painted composition) is atomb. Inside the tomb is a skeleton, which may represent Adam. Thevanishing point is at the center of the masonry altar, because this is theeye level of the spectator, who looks up at the Trinity and down at thetomb. The vanishing point, five feet above the floor level, pulls bothviews together. By doing this, an illusion of an actual structure iscreated. The interior volume of this structure is an flank of thespace that the person looking at the work is standing in. The adjustmentof the spectator to the pictured space is one of the first steps in the phylogeny of illusionistic painting. Illusionistic painting fascinatedmany artists of the Renaissance and Baroque periods. The proportions in this painting are so numerically exact that onecan actually take aim the numerical dimensions of the chapel in thebackground. The span of the painted vault is seven feet, and the depth isnine feet. Thus, he achieves not only successful illusion, but a rational,metrical coherence that, by maintaining the ... ... wearing a small robe around his waist. The otherforms are depicted superbly. Their bodies are not lost fag end the draperywhich they wear, yet they are not seen exactly either. The folds are moredelicate, which create a calmer mood. (Christs description was alreadygive n). The forms are three dimensional, and also flummox weight. Theyclearly take up space, and where they are is clearly defined. As in The Holy Trinity, the composition is generally symmetrical,centered around the body of Christ. It is a worthless composition,because of the events taking place. Expression is shown on all of thefigures, who grieve Christs death. Overall, the two works are very similar. Masaccio, however, wasmore interested in the mathematical aspects of painting than Grunewald. both(prenominal) works are superb, and have their own distinct qualities.