Plate with Hercules and Lichas and arms of the Pucci family 1532

Editor: This plate, titled "Plate with Hercules and Lichas and arms of the Pucci family," dates back to 1532. It's a ceramic piece by Fra Xanto Avelli da Rovigo. It is striking to me how sculptural it seems to be; despite being a plate, there’s a real sense of depth and dynamism. What’s your take on it? Curator: Formally, the artist presents a fascinating tension between flatness and depth. Notice how the circular shape dictates the composition, forcing figures to its edge. But the landscape recedes using atmospheric perspective – the blue fading into the distance. It sets up a tension. Do you see it? Editor: Yes, it’s almost like they're playing with two different pictorial strategies at once. The foreground is so busy, with these robust figures in violent action and then that little lamb calmly to the right of them, versus that hazy blue vista behind, creates a sense of the scene overflowing the circular border. How else might form be communicating meaning here? Curator: Observe how the artist employed color. Predominantly blues and earth tones. What's the chromatic effect? The figures appear as though sculpted and illuminated from a dramatic and theatrical light source. It accentuates the Herculean form. The use of that gold trim around the plate brings closure but highlights it as artifice. What overall effect do you see in all of these choices? Editor: The dynamism definitely creates a captivating focal point and adds depth to the scene's inherent drama. That is great, it makes me see the plate with a fresh set of eyes! Curator: Indeed. Now we can look beyond just surface decoration. Thinking through structure clarifies purpose, providing visual proof of an aesthetic ideology.