|
Bernardo Daddi - his reputation
Despite his current reputation as one of the most important Florentine painters in the first half of the fourteenth century, Bernardo Daddi was hardly mentioned by Vasari in the 16th century and was misidentified as Nardo di Cione in the 19th century. Daddi found a market for small diptychs and triptychs and made an important contribution to the development of the portable tabernacle for private devotion. However, opinions about the quality of his work vary widely, and although he has been described as 'an artist of rare and exquisite gifts', and a 'master of supreme lyrical inspiration' by Offner, critics have also commented on the repetitious nature of his work. Longhi, for example, has called him a 'mediocre clockwork nightingale'.
Daddi and his workshop did produce a large number of small devotional paintings based on a common model with only minor variations, the most common scenes depicted being the Virgin and Child Enthroned, the Nativity and the Crucifixion.
However, the individual variations between what at first glance appear similar works, demonstrate Daddi's flair for narrative invention. Furthermore, the exceptional quality of such works as the tabernacle in the Courtauld Gallery, firmly establish Daddi's reputation as an artist with a lyrical and decorative style, refinement of design and expressive characterisation.
Offner, R.et al, A critical and historical Corpus of Florentine Painting. The 14th century.
Sec.III,
Vol.III, Florence, 1989
Roberto Longhi, 'Qualità e industria in Taddeo Gaddi ed altri', Paragone, III, 1959, p.5
The tricks of the trade
Introduction to the triptych
Using the structure for dramatic effect
|
