Dissecting Botticelli's Adoration of the Magi - James Earle

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The scene of the three wise men offering gifts to a newborn Jesus was widely painted during the Renaissance era, so how did painter Sandro Botticelli create a version that's still well known today? James Earle describes who and what set Botticelli's Adoration of the Magi apart in the annals of art history.

Lesson by James Earle, animation by Buzzco Associates, inc.

Around 1469, a wealthy money changer commissioned

a young painter named Sandro Botticelli

to paint an altar piece.

Botticelli would, of course, become known

as one of the greatest painters of the High Renaissance,

producing works like "La Primavera"

and "The Birth of Venus."

But, in 1469, he had not yet earned this reputation.

The scene this young artist set out to paint was well-known:

the Three Wise Men, or Magi,

arriving at the birth place of Jesus Christ.

Botticelli would aspire to take this common theme

and produce an entirely original work,

while asserting himself

among the most important citizens of Florence.

Many earlier paintings illustrate the Magi

arriving at a stable, stately manger,

fitting for the son of God.

The young Botticelli, however, chose

to place the scene in the dilapidated Roman ruin.

At the center of this structure,

he placed a sturdy rock for Mary and Jesus

to sit high above their visitors.

With this decision, Botticelli seemed to say

Christianity will be built on sturdier stuff than Rome.

Botticelli then populated the space

with important men from his city.

On the right side, he paints the man

who paid for this work, Gaspare del Lama,

looking out at the viewer

and confidently pointing at himself

so that there is no question

who is responsible for this masterpiece.

Though born the son of a barber,

del Lama amassed a good sum of money

through currency exchange in his lifetime.

He earned enough money to buy a burial chapel

and decorate it with a pretty painting.

The Three Wise Men appear at the center of this painting,

kneeling to Mary and Jesus.

As models for these important figures,

Botticelli used members of the important Medici family.

Del Lama's career as a money changer

would not have been possible

without the help of the powerful Medici family,

in particular Cosimo de' Medici,

who appears prominently at Mary's feet.

The other wise men can be identified

as Piero and Giovanni de' Medici,

Cosimo's two sons.

The business of money exchange

had dubious ethical and legal associations,

so the friendship of this powerful family was important.

And the young heir to Medici power, Lorenzo,

could not be omitted from this painting's composition.

He appears to the left of the manger.

This painting seems to say

the Medici legacy, with its many healthy heirs,

will be built on sturdier stuff than Rome.

Botticelli then filled the rest of the space

with other friends and powerful figures from Florence.

And, among the Florentine elite,

the young, confident artist painted himself

looking directly at the viewer.

Botticelli's presence in this painting

illustrates a radical shift in the perception

of artists during this time period.

Botticelli did not view himself

as a common craftsman hired for a simple job.

He viewed himself as a friend

to the powerful families of Florence.

Paintings like "The Adoration of the Magi"

reveal much more than a simple retelling of a biblical story.

They can tell the story of, among other things,

a modestly-born money changer

attempting to spend his money virtuously

by making a local chapel more beautiful,

or the story of an ambitious young painter,

elevating the reputation of his craft

to stand among the wealthy elite of his city.