The Agony in the Garden 1426

Masaccio painted 'The Agony in the Garden' in the early 15th century, most likely using tempera on wood, during a time of significant transition in Florentine art. This diptych depicts the biblical scene of Christ's anguish before his crucifixion. The visual codes are rooted in the religious culture of Renaissance Italy, a society deeply influenced by the Church. The artwork would originally function as part of an altarpiece that would have been commissioned by a wealthy patron or religious institution. Masaccio was working within a tradition in which the church played a role as a major sponsor of the arts and a form of ideological control. However, he and contemporaries like Donatello and Brunelleschi began to challenge the dominance of earlier artistic styles and to assert a new aesthetic based on humanism and realism. This is clear in the strong emotion on display in this devotional painting. By examining the contracts and account books of the period, along with theological texts and sermons, we can better understand the complex interplay between artistic innovation, religious doctrine, and social change in Renaissance Florence.