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Blue-sky thinking: eight artworks inspired by gazing into the infinite
In different ways, the artists who made these works, from Albers to Fontana, explored ‘everything that happens in the sky’
Lot Essay
Originating from the pavement of the Libreria Piccolomini in the Duomo of Siena. The original tiles were substituted by lozenge-shaped tiles from the factory of Ginori in Doccia.
See J. Giacomotti, Catalogue des majoliques des musées nationaux, Paris, 1974, p. 109-110, no. 400-401 for related floor tiles with the same provenance in the Musée de Cluny, Paris and the Musée national de céramique, Sèvres; F. Quinterio, Maiolica nell' Architettura del Rinascimento Italiano, Firenze, 1988, p. 96, ill. 100.
Adjoining the Cathedral of Siena the Libreria Piccolomini was built in 1485 by Cardinal Francesco Piccolomini (later Pope Pius III) to house the masterpieces of classical literature collected by his famous uncle, Enea Silvio Piccolomini, also known as the humanist Pope Pius II. The Umbrian master Pinturicchio and assistants covered the ceiling and walls with ten giant frescoes (finished in 1507) celebrating in rich colours the life of Enea Silvio Piccolomini.
The crescent moon depicted on the floor tiles refers to the coat-of-arms of the Piccolomini family.
See J. Giacomotti, Catalogue des majoliques des musées nationaux, Paris, 1974, p. 109-110, no. 400-401 for related floor tiles with the same provenance in the Musée de Cluny, Paris and the Musée national de céramique, Sèvres; F. Quinterio, Maiolica nell' Architettura del Rinascimento Italiano, Firenze, 1988, p. 96, ill. 100.
Adjoining the Cathedral of Siena the Libreria Piccolomini was built in 1485 by Cardinal Francesco Piccolomini (later Pope Pius III) to house the masterpieces of classical literature collected by his famous uncle, Enea Silvio Piccolomini, also known as the humanist Pope Pius II. The Umbrian master Pinturicchio and assistants covered the ceiling and walls with ten giant frescoes (finished in 1507) celebrating in rich colours the life of Enea Silvio Piccolomini.
The crescent moon depicted on the floor tiles refers to the coat-of-arms of the Piccolomini family.
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