Sandro Botticelli and Workshop
Trinity with Mary Magdalene, John the Baptist
and Tobias and the Angel

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Sandro Botticelli, Trinity with Mary Mgdalene, John the Baptist and Tobias and the Angel

Date:

1491/94

215 X 191.5 cm

London, Courtauld Institute Galleries

Trinity with Mary Magdalene, John the Baptist and Tobias and the Angel

Botticelli was influenced by Girolamo Savonarola in the early 1490’s. Savonarola was a preacher who wanted his followers to embrace a simple Christianity and spoke against the corruption of the church. He also spoke out against the art of the day. He strongly criticized art that was non-religious which Botticelli listened to and worked into his style during his later years. Savonarola spoke out against all the ornamentation both in artistry and in the daily life of the Florentines. He called on them to build fires and burn their ‘vanities.’ This included luxury items along with non-religious paintings and sculptures.

These upheavals in the culture of Florence brought changes to Botticelli’s style. The Trinity painting is a great example of the changes Botticelli made to his paintings. This is a very religious painting that focused on the center image of God the Father, God the son, and the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove. The Trinity is surrounded by angels. Mary Magdalene is on the left and John the Baptist on the right. On the bottom right is Tobias and the Archangel Raphael. The Father God’s head is symbolically the largest in the picture, as the highest-ranking individual. The figures are more prominently displayed because of the plain dark background.