KLEMM

The Kunsthaus holds a number of Italian paintings dating from the Late Middle Ages between ca. 1300-1500, which clearly illustrate the developments in religious imagery during this period of intellectual transformation. Well into the 14th century, portraits of saints as well as religious scenes with narrative content were painted onto a gold ground. The spiritual dimension is strongly emphasized. By the 15th century, however, a new understanding of Christ’s humanity had become established, and earthly existence was also deemed worthy of depiction. Fra Angelico and Matteo di Giovanni, for example, placed their lives of the saints within a real, three dimensional architecture, linking sacred events with the sphere of everyday life.