Pietro Lorenzetti - a rebirth

 Today I am writing about a subject with which I have been fortunate enough to have an intimate connection: the restoration of the polyptych1 painted between 1320 and 1324 by Pietro Lorenzetti for the church of Santa Maria della Pieve (also known as the Pieve di Santa Maria Assunta) in Arezzo. The Lorenzetti brothers, Pietro (c.1280-85 to c.1348?) and the younger Ambrogio, were from Siena and because of his rightly famous frescos there, the Allegories of Good and Bad Government, Ambrogio is perhaps the better-known of the two. However, Pietro painted (1310-20) some of the frescos in the lower Basilica of San Francesco in Assisi, a most important group in that complex art-historical environment. As far as our polyptych is concerned, the contract for the commission of the altarpiece in Santa Maria in Arezzo was signed in April 1320.

Madonna and Child with Saints, 1320-24, by Pietro Lorenzetti, tempera and gold leaf on wooden panels, 315.5 x 293.6 cm. The church of Santa Maria della Pieve (Pieve di Santa Maria Assunta), Arezzo. Note that almost the entire original frame, with its lateral pillars and predella base, is missing. Image courtesy of R.I.C.E.R.C.A., Arezzo.

I had come to know this exquisitely refined and subtle painting by making sure I visited it every time I found myself in Arezzo. My principal reason for making the short journey from Florence to this wonderful Tuscan city was in fact to see the fresco masterpiece in the ancient basilica of San Francesco, the Legend of the True Cross (1452-55?) painted by Piero della Francesca. And speaking of Piero, in the hill-top cathedral is another of his frescos, the powerful (like all his women) Magdalen (1462-64?) which just happens to be on the wall beside the large and impressive funerary monument of the Bishop of Arezzo, Guido Tarlati (of 1330; also restored by R.I.C.E.R.C.A. in 2017 with funds again raised by them) - the very man who commissioned the Pieve altarpiece from Pietro Lorenzetti. I would usually then visit the small church of San Domenico to see Cimabue's large painted crucifix, another elegantly powerful work. After that, on to the Pieve di Santa Maria, which, like San Domenico, I would normally have to myself: there to 'commune' with the respectfully taciturn elegance of Pietro Lorenzetti's great altarpiece. On a visit three years ago however, in 2017, Pietro's master-work was gone! I subsequently discovered that it had been removed into the hands of the restorers at R.I.C.E.R.C.A. - Paola Baldetti, Marzia Benini and Isabella Droandi - three experts in their field, and dedicated, even without sufficient funds, to the restoration of this most special late-medieval masterpiece. R.I.C.E.R.C.A., right from the outset and together with two non-profit groups, Art Angels Arezzo and Friends of Florence (especially concerning donations from the USA), has managed to gather the funds necessary for this unique endeavour. The restoration of this beautiful polyptych, carried out by R.I.C.E.R.C.A. in Arezzo, has therefore been paid for thanks in great part to the generosity of both Italian and international donors.

                                   

A close-up of the small roundel in the second tier on the extreme right-hand side showing the difference between the 'before' condition, on the left, and the 'after' condition, on the right. Note that special attention has been paid to the restoration of the gold background thereby restoring its 'transcendental' function. Image courtesy of R.I.C.E.R.C.A., Arezzo.

This extremely demanding work has taken about four years to (almost) complete and involved the disassembling of the 700 year-old wooden structure, the scientific analysis of its integrity, as well as the exhaustive cleaning and repair of the paint film. Some work remains to be done, notably on an indicative frame - parts of the original (which would have brought the overall dimensions to 350 x 350 cm) having been lost over the intervening centuries - and its stabilisation, with a steel sub-structure, for the return to its 'home', the Pieve. Given the large number of medieval works on wood which are now to be found in museums all over the world, it is a not-insignificant fact that Pietro's altarpiece, painted expressly for Santa Maria della Pieve, has been there, except for one or two brief periods, ever since its original installation. Hopefully, and with a little further financial support, it will soon be back!

One of the restorers using a microscope and very fine tools during the restoration of the right-hand panel, with St John the Evangelist holding a red book, of the Lorenzetti Polyptych. Image courtesy of R.I.C.E.R.C.A., Arezzo.

The altarpiece, also commented on by Vasari2, is typical insofar as its layout and iconography are more or less those which may be found in similar works of the period. It shows the Madonna gazing at her new son, the Christ Child, who in turn gazes back at her while holding with his left hand a part of her veil. On either side of these central figures are representations of four important saints, amongst whom St John the Baptist and St John the Evangelist. Above these are portrayed eight other saints with, in the centre, an Annunciation; above them four more saints and, at the very top, the Virgin in Glory. Various earlier restorations, not to say wilful damage (attempted arson, graffiti, etc.) have contributed to sometimes traumatic changes in the paint surface, especially the once common use of soda (a harsh abrasive) and the application of deliberately darkening varnishes. It was discovered during the extremely demanding restoration that all the incised work in the golden haloes, etcetera, was done by hand, that is, not with the use of labour-saving wheeled tools. For me at least, one of the important and interesting things about this work is that it was signed, twice, by its author Pietro, and that nearly all the saints still have their names written under them. The first 'signature', situated under the Madonna, reads: PETRUS LAURENTII HANC PINXIT DEXTRA SENENSIS (Pietro Lorenzetti of Siena painted this with his right hand3); the second, on the sword of Santa Reparata (in the first cuspid on the left) reads: PETRUS ME FECIT (Pietro made me)4.

Initially, the unveiling of the restored polyptych was to occur this year on the 700th anniversary of the date of the commission contract, April 17, 1320; unfortunately, COVID-19 caused this to be postponed but, all things being equal, it should now take place on November 8 (a recent resurgence of COVID in Italy however may cause this too to be postponed!). 

Here is the link to the GoFundMe page set-up by the non-profit organisation Art Angels Arezzo which is raising funds for the completion of the restoration: https://gf.me/u/y4t4sc  In this regard, it is interesting that the altarpiece was originally paid for, some 700 years ago, with donations from the public, and here, once again, it needs our support for its 'rebirth'. Even small amounts help and I think this is one very good way to say 'thank you' to Italy for the innumerable works of art it has given to all of us.

1 A 'polyptych' (πολλοι + πτυχη = many folds) is a multi-panelled painting, very typical of religious art in the late-medieval period, but also later; polyptychs were very often quite large and therefore costly and so were most frequently to be found in churches, normally standing on an altar (hence the alternative generic but not exclusive name 'altarpiece'). Sometimes, as in the present case, there were multiple images on one side only, but, in other cases, such as Duccio's  Maestà (in Siena) for instance, they could have images on both the front and the back. Unfortunately, over their centuries' long life, many have been cut down in size, and often somewhat mutilated by 'restorers' (the Arezzo example earlier suffering both fates), and many have been dismembered, with different elements ending up in different parts of the world (Piero della Francesca's Sant'Agostino Altarpiece is an example, with panels in Milan, London, Lisbon, New York and Washington DC). As the Greek words - from which derives the modern word - imply, many polyptychs were constructed so that they could be closed and then opened on special occasions (with pictures on the outside of the doors as well; see the Ghent Altarpiece by Hubert and Jan van Eyck). The Lorenzetti example here has images on one side only and no 'doors'.

2 Giorgio Vasari, Le vite de' più eccellenti pittori, scultori e architettori, published by Edizioni dell'Orso, 2017, Volume 1, edited by Enrico Mattioda and based on the 1568 so-called Giuntina edition of the Lives. Page 283, in the Vita di Pietro Laurati (the Life of Pietro Laurati), Pietro Lorenzetti is mistakenly called by Vasari 'Laurati' and not linked to his brother Ambrogio, about whom he separately writes, correctly identifying him as 'Ambruogio Lorenzetti, pittor Sanese' (page312).

3 The last phrase of Pietro's 'signature', "with his right hand", has caused some perplexity as it is a very unusual statement, whereas his second 'signature', the one on the sword, is much more typical (interesting in itself however, as it is the artwork which is 'speaking': "Pietro made me"! The artist's reference to his right hand could possibly have something to do with the general disapproval of anything to do with the left hand, regarded superstitiously as not acceptable to God.

4 This information and other details were supplied to me by one of the team at R.I.C.E.R.C.A. and are taken from the Technical Summary entitled: Pietro Lorenzetti (1280 circa - 1348) Arezzo, Pieve di Santa Maria. There is some doubt concerning the dates of birth and death of Pietro but it is thought he may have perished with his brother during the plague.