Admirers of Renaissance art can view works from the renowned Uffizi Galleries without making a trip to Florence, Italy. 

The Minneapolis Institute of Art is presenting “Botticelli and Renaissance Florence: Masterworks from the Uffizi,” featuring more than 45 loans from the Italian museum, including works by Sandro Botticelli, a Catholic well-known for painting a wide range of religious subjects throughout his career, including many Madonnas. 

“The term ‘Renaissance’ derives from the French word that translates to ‘rebirth,’” said Lois Eliason, adjunct professor at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul who has taught a variety of art history classes at UST over the last 20 years. 

“In this case, contemporary Florentine painters, sculptors and architects studied and emulated the works and style of ancient Greece and Rome, rivaling the magnificent achievements of these civilizations,” Eliason said. 

Botticelli (1445-1510) lived most of his life in Florence and was a leading artist of the Italian Renaissance. He painted three major frescoes in the Sistine Chapel in Rome, commissioned by Pope Sixtus IV, as well as his most famous work, The Birth of Venus. 

His career began as an apprentice of Fra Filippo Lippi, a leading Florentine painter who was a favorite of the Medicis, a powerful Catholic family who gained success in commerce and banking. The Medicis’ devotion to the arts and humanities helped make Florence the center of the Renaissance, a time characterized by a new awakening of art, culture and learning. 

The Medici family went on to produce four popes: Leo X (1513-1521), Clement VII (1523-1534), Pius IV (1559-1565) and Leo XI (1605). 

“I think everyone, Catholic or not, should see this exhibit,” said Eliason. “We can understand a little bit more about the painter and his contemporaries, learn about what life was like in 15th century Florence, and experience a selection of gorgeous paintings, which are some of the Uffizi’s most prized works. Minneapolis is very lucky to be the only stop for many of these paintings, which I believe rarely leave Italy,” said Eliason. 

“Together, these paintings present an overview of the Christian spirit that was persuasive throughout 15th century Florence through the lens of one of its most popular and prolific painters,” she said. 

Madonna and Child in Glory with Angels, one of Botticelli’s best-known sacred pieces, features a supernatural, celestial character contrasting with a very human depiction of Mary and Jesus. 

“Botticelli created tender scenes with his sacred subjects, and this one is really special, with the gold highlights and such detail,” said Rachel McGarry, Elizabeth MacMillan chair of European art and curator of European paintings and works on paper at Mia. 

Another of Botticelli’s depictions of Jesus and his mother, Mary, is a brilliantly colored work with detailed symbolism — Adoration of the Child with Angels (Madonna of the Roses). 

“Here, Botticelli and his assistants paint a scene of the Virgin Mary and angels adoring the Christ child in an outdoor garden,” Eliason said. 

“I love this painting for its colorful and detailed renderings of costumes, plants and flowers; take note of the strawberries and violets in the foreground meadow as well as the roses that fill up the sky in the background,” she said. 

Eliason noted the small-scale painting, Saint Augustine in His Study, in which Botticelli gives the viewer an intimate glimpse into the private study of St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430), whose writings helped shape Western Christianity. 

“Here, a heavy green curtain is pulled back to show the saint writing at his desk,” Eliason said. “We can see books on the shelves at our left, and a low-relief roundel depicting the Virgin Mary and Christ child on the back wall.” 

“Pieces of torn paper and quills scattered on the ground suggest that St. Augustine is fully immersed in his work; Botticelli portrays the saint with a sense of calm reserve,” she said. 

Another Botticelli religious painting, Adoration of the Magi, is displayed in the last gallery of the exhibition. 

“This is a remarkable painting, filled with grace and beauty as the three kings honor the infant Christ on Jan. 6, a very important day in Florence,” McGarry said. “The more you look at the painting, the more you see.” 

“Botticelli’s scene in this painting adds another layer to our understanding of the story by making it an homage to the most powerful figures from 15th century Florence,” said Eliason. 

“Portraits of Medici family members appear on the figures of the kings, and the clan’s patriarch, Cosimo the Elder, is shown cradling the feet of the infant Christ,” Eliason said. 

“The Medici were active members of the Confraternity of the Magi, which sponsored theatrical reenactments of the scene during religious festivals, with members dressing up in elaborate costumes and parading through the streets,” she said. 

Of note — the only known self portrait of Botticelli is at the far-right side of Adoration of the Magi. “The artist wears a heavy camel-colored robe and turns his head to acknowledge our presence,” said Eliason. 

“The magnificence of this iconic painting can only be truly appreciated in person,” she said. 

Other notable Botticelli works in the Mia exhibition include The Trial of Moses, The Flagellation and Pallas and Centaur, a large painting Eliason said is “not to be missed, as it fully embraces contemporary human thinking regarding beauty and virtue.”

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BOTTICELLI AND THE MIA 

“Botticelli and Renaissance Florence: Masterworks from the Uffizi” 

Oct. 16 through Jan. 8 

Minneapolis Institute of Art 

2400 3rd Ave. S., Minneapolis 

$16 to $20; free age 17 and under 

newartsmia.org