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Arts of the Renaissance Gallery - The Ashmolean Oxford


 I was caught up with a lovely friend, and some lovely art this week. This painting, 'St Nicholas of Bari calming the storm', by Bicci di Lorenzo, is an absolute favourite.

As I've said elsewhere, great art is to be experienced, savoured, so I'll just urge you to feast your eyes on St Nick zooming in like an exocet...

...his pristine gloves...


....the reasonably shaped mermaid, and the lowering, green sea.

Thanks to my friend the Rector, I like to keep an eye out for St Catherine, here's a rather pensive one by Vittore Crivelli.

Here is a cross St Lucy (Andrea di Bartolo Cini). I recently found out that she was supposedly killed by a sword thrust to throat, and is invoked against throat infections as a consequence, which seems to be adding insult to injury, if you ask me.

This little foot of the infant Christ (Tino di Camaino) caught at my heart...although I think that pelican should be confiscated.

On the subject of feet, had Jacopo Sansovino (or anyone from from his studio) ever seen any?


The folks who brought you that dreadful foot thingie, also brought this lovely happy, little lion....so all is forgiven.


Now, these little snaps only scratch the surface of one of the amazing galleries in the Ashmolean, so I'll leave you with one of my favourite cats, in this painting by Dosso Dossi. The blurb calls it sharped-eyed. Sharp eyed my foot...that's pure MENACE.
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