Brunelleschi And Ghiberti In Early Rennaissance Essay

, Research Paper

The competition panels by Brunelleschi and Ghiberti were made in Early Rennaissance. They were two of the seven works that competed for the series of doors for the Florentine Baptistery. The subject for the competition doors was the story of how the faith of the patriarch Abraham was tested by God, who asked him to sacrifice his only son, Isaac. Abraham took Isaac into the woods to sacrifice, accompanied by two servants and a donkey. Just as Abraham sacrificed Isaac, God, convinced about Abrahams faith, sent a ram by an angel who told him the sacrifice of the ram is enough.

The competition panels picturize this moment. They have differences and similarities in terms of Aristotle?s theories andterms. I think first they need to be examined through causality.

The material cause, the raw material used, for both works are the same, bronze. The efficient cause are the artists themselves. There are differences in terms of formal cause, that is the design layout by the artist. In the way the panels are made, Brunelleschi?s panel is made up of parts individually shaped and brought together. Ghiberti made the panel as one piece. The way the story is picturized is also different. Brunelleshi?s figures have daring poses, the movement of Abraham and the pose of Isaac are far from being balanced and harmonical. Abraham and Isaac and the other elements have a tension in the way that they are placed and shaped. The drapery and the figures are broken and sharp, again, far from natural. Ghiberti?s figures are more natural and gentle in their poses and movements. The boy?s head looking up towards the god accepting death, Abraham?s movement with knife more natural, the knife not touching, no tension. The angel and other elements also look natural in the way they interact with other elements and their individual poses. The final cause would be the same fot both panels, to tell the story of Sacrifice of Isaac on the door panels using bronze.