Essay Comparing Angelico And Richard Hamilton's Annunciation

Despite the differing art practice of the artists, and time period of which the artworks were made, both Fra Angelico (c. 1440-1445) and Richard Hamilton’s (2005) ‘Annunciations’, explore the punctuality of space and the composition of its elements through the portrayal of a commonly depicted Biblical event of the Renaissance.

The fundamental message of Christianity represented by the two artworks is the encounter of a human with that of a divine and spiritual being within a shared space. The Annunciation is the Christian celebration of the announcement made by the angel Gabriel, addressing the Virgin Mary that she would conceive a son by the power of the Holy Spirit, who is to be called Jesus, the Son of God. The angel’s pronouncement is

1440-1445), was painted by Fra Angelico, who was commissioned by Cosimo de’ Medici to decorate the walls of San Marco in Florence, Italy, with intricate frescoes. The Annunciation was artistically designed to aid the Dominican monks at San Marco with their meditations and inspire their devotions, as they followed a life of strict devout worship and lived in simple, humble cells. Located on the south wall of the north corridor of the convent, the fresco that was positioned on the upper floor in front of the staircase acted as an illusionary window, which looked out onto a garden and cloistered area. Fra Angelico inspired the sacred scene of the Annunciation into the monk’s perceived world of physical

The Annunciation shows Gabriel and the Virgin Mary conversing in a cloister surrounded by Corinthian columns of the Composite order, which are all supporting the Roman arches. The structural components of the setting of the Annunciation work together to frame Gabriel and Mary, and to highlight the focal point of the piece. The two separate arches and the centre column in the foreground establishes both Gabriel and Mary’s respective space, separating them, however, at the same time they are kept together as they still share the same floor space. Furthermore, space flows from all directions into and around the Holy Virgin Mary, and is respective to her central stillness and grace. Mary is pictured seated on a simple wooden stool within the cloister of a ‘Hortus Conclusus’ as seen through the fence and window in the background, which underlines her seclusion from the world, reaffirming her innocence and virginity. Despite its simplicity, the stool plays an important role in allowing space to flow around Mary, and to convey a perception of humbleness and mundanity to the