The most beautiful Italian works of art
Italy is world famous for its natural but also artistic beauties. Among the most famous there is certainly the “Gioconda“, or “Mona Lisa”, painted by Leonardo da Vinci; it is one of the most famous works of art in the world. Leonardo took more than ten years to paint it, from 1503 to 1514. Today this work of art, famous for the enigmatic smile of the Mona Lisa, is kept at the Musée du Louvre in Paris. But we at Taols want to have you in Italy instead, so lets move forward with other interesting works of art based here in our beautiful country!
Among the most famous Italian works of art in the world we find “The Creation of Adam“, a fresco by Michelangelo Buonarroti which is part of the decoration of the vault of the Sistine Chapel, in the Vatican Museums in Rome, commissioned by Pope Julius II. This cycle of frescoes is a monumental work, created by Michelangelo from 1508 to 1512.
The “Birth of Venus“ is a painting by Botticelli (made between 1482 and 1485); it is one of the greatest examples of Renaissance art, preserved in the Uffizi in Florence. Botticelli’s Venus has always been considered the perfect idea of female beauty in art.
In our list of the most famous Italian works of art, we also mention another Venus, this time by Titian, commonly known as the “Venus of Urbino” and created in 1538. This work is also kept in the Uffizi museum in Florence.
Another early Renaissance work of art is the “Dead Christ” by Andrea Mantegna, preserved at the Pinacoteca di Brera in Milan. In this work there is an original use of perspective, with the subject taken from an unusual angle that gives the viewer the impression of participating directly in the scene, as if he were standing at the feet of Christ. It is therefore far from the symbolic representations of Christ typical of the medieval era.
Michelangelo’s “David” is considered a masterpiece of world sculpture, as well as one of the emblems of the Renaissance. It represents the republic that defies tyranny, as well as the canon of male beauty. This sculpture has become a symbol of Italy abroad. Today it is kept in the Galleria dell’Accademia in Florence. In front of Palazzo Vecchio, in Piazza della Signoria it is possible to admire a copy of this work of art.
Among the sculptures we cannot fail to mention that of “Paolina Borghese as Venus victorious”, a marble sculpture created by Antonio Canova and exhibited at the Galleria Borghese in Rome. In this work the author celebrates the beauty of Paolina Borghese, sister of the Emperor Napoleon, and compares her to a goddess.
Among the most famous Italian works of art we also include another female portrait: the “Lady with an Ermine”, by Leonardo da Vinci, painted between 1488-1490. It is kept in Poland, in the Wawel Castle in Krakow and it is one of the best known Italian works of art abroad.
A few years later, around 1494, Leonardo da Vinci was preparing to create another of the most famous masterpieces of all time: “The Last Supper”, a fresco painted in the refectory of the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan.
An unmissable painting for all romantics is “The kiss” by Francesco Hayez, painted in 1859 and which can be admired at the Pinacoteca di Brera in Milan. The painting, oil on canvas, represents an apparently intimate scene between two lovers, set in a chivalrous Middle Ages within the walls of a castle.
Also in the Pinacoteca di Brera, in Milan, there is another masterpiece of Italian art: “Marriage of the Virgin” by Raffaello Sanzio (known as Raphael). The painting was made in 1504 for the chapel of San Giuseppe in the church of San Francesco in Città di Castello. It is the first work of art signed by Raffaello. The great attention paid by the artist to perspective is evident in the work, highlighted by the different size of the characters present within the painting.
