Description of the picture:
The Annunciation – Sebastiano Mazzoni. The middle of the XVII century. Canvas, oil. 154×112
“Annunciation” Sebastiano Mazzoni (1611-1678) impresses with the extraordinary interpretation and composition of the gospel story. A huge part of it is occupied by the figure of the archangel Gabriel, with the Virgin Mary carrying the news of the imminent miracle, the sinless conception and Her birth of the divine Baby. And although in the tender hand of the archangel a lily flower is a symbol of purity, you can still understand the young Mary, who recoiled so sharply. The artist endows Her with almost perfect beauty, puts on red-blue clothes, traditional for Madonna’s iconography, but the impetuous movement of the Virgin seems to be the result of a reaction not so much to the news as to the unexpected and rapid descent of the archangel. This rapid dynamics is underlined by Gabriel’s bent knees, hovering hands, as if hindering speed, but at first by the tornado-like swirling of his clothes.
Mazzoni was born and worked in Florence, then moved to Venice, where he lived until his death, creating, moreover, as an architect. Picturesque altar compositions reveal his special skill in conveying deformations from the perspective and mystical flashes of light, however, softened by color tints."