Compare and contrast two paintings
This is a detailed comparison of two paintings, one being “The holy trinity” by Masaccio and “Deposition” by Rogier Van Der Weyden. These two paintings were painted in the same period. “The Holy Trinity” was painted in the year 1424 to 1427 while the “Deposition” was painted in 1435. Both paintings have a religious setting. These two paintings have a similar theme which is about the Crucifixion of Christ. These two paintings have also used aspects of hidden symbolism. In the Holy Trinity painting, the skeleton on the bottom of the painting has a hidden meaning. On the Deposition painting, the skull on the ground implies that someone else has died in that very spot.
There are several differences though. The holy trinity is based on Christ on the cross while the Deposition painting is about Christ being lowered from the cross. They are based on different incidences. The holy trinity and the Deposition are also different when it comes to the choice of color. The Deposition is more colorful than The Holy trinity. Both painters used totally different colors in their painting. In the first place, the message passed by these paintings is different and so is the content. In the Deposition painting, the people holding Christ seem to be mourning while those in the Holy Trinity painting seem to be mocking Christ. These people too who are in the Depositional painting, also seem to be helping out take Christ off the cross while those in the Holy Trinity are just staring as if despising Him.
These two paintings also differ in that The Holy Trinity painting some of the details has been concealed and it takes great amounts of concentration to see the finer details. These include the skeleton beneath the characters in the painting and the writings on the tomb in which the skeleton lies. The Deposition painting on the other hand is very revealing and everything is conspicuous. Even the skull on the floor is very visible unlike in the Holy trinity Painting.
These two paintings have applied realism as the main form (Kleiner 215). This can be seen from the appearance of the people. People or characters in these pictures appear as they would in reality. These painters did an excellent work with the paintings. These paintings make scenes appear as they would normally. Looking at them is just like looking at the real picture.
Impressionisms style has been evident The Holy Trinity Painting. This is because the happenings as seen on the painting are not really realistic (Kleiner 216). The presence of a greater authority seen behind the cross is fictional. This authority could be God. It is not realistic for God to be seen in the real life. The Deposition painting is all realistic. Its incidences are realistic and realism is the main style the artist has used.
The artists have used different mediums in their paintings. Masaccio has used fresco as the medium to paint while Weyden has used oil on wood. This attributes for the differences in texture and appearance for the painting (Kleiner 205). Also, Masaccio and Weyden have used different coloring in their paintings. Weyden has used several cool colors making the painting more eye-catching. These include blue, purple and red. These colors make the viewer see each and every fine detail of the painting. On the other hand, Masaccio has used very few cool colors. These are used only on the character of the extreme right and the great authority behind the cross. For the rest of the painting, he has used warm colors. This way the painting is not very revealing (Kleiner 208).
The painters too have used the available space differently. The Deposition painting has all its space used while The Holy Trinity painting has used very little of the space. In this sense, the painter to the Deposition, Weyden is trying to show as much details as possible. He wants to show the viewer the reactions of everyone in the painting. Masaccio on the other hand is trying to conceal as much details as possible.
Work cited
Kleiner, S. F., Gardner’s Art through the Ages: A global history, Boston: Thomson Higher Education Press, 2009.
