Dimensions: support: 600 x 1013 mm frame: 807 x 1206 x 83 mm
Copyright: CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 DEED, Photo: Tate
Editor: So, here we have John Brett's "Florence from Bellosguardo". It's undated, but a sweeping panorama of the city. It feels… distant, almost clinical in its detail. What do you see in this piece? Curator: Beyond the picturesque, consider the power dynamics at play. Who gets to represent Florence, and from what vantage point? Is this simply a beautiful cityscape, or a statement about the artist's position in relation to the city's history and culture? Editor: I hadn't thought about it that way. The sheer scope made me miss the potential for commentary. Curator: Exactly. The very act of viewing from above implies a certain control, a claim to knowledge. How might a Florentine artist have depicted the same scene differently, focusing on lived experience rather than distant observation? Editor: That's a really interesting question. Now I see how much this image leaves unsaid. Thanks for opening my eyes to the cultural politics of landscape painting! Curator: Absolutely! Art is never truly neutral; it's always participating in a larger conversation.
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http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/brett-florence-from-bellosguardo-t01560
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Brett became a student at the Royal Academy in 1853. Here he was influenced by the work of the Pre-Raphaelites and the writings of their most powerful supporter, John Ruskin. His earliest pictures in the Pre-Raphaelite style were much praised by Ruskin. During the winters of 1861-2 and 1862-3, he stayed in Florence where he painted this picture. It shows the city from the south-west looking towards Fiesole and the Appenines. The picture adheres strictly to the principle of 'truth to nature' and is a rare example of Pre-Raphaelite townscape. Gallery label, August 2004
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