The Genesis of Andrea Pisano's Bronze Doors

Abstract

At all times the interrelation between mediaeval Italian art and Byzantium has presented an important problem for the history of art. Already known to the earliest writers, it has been accepted as a significant fact in all discussions of the origin and development of the new style in the transition from Duecento to Trecento. Not only have scholars recognized that the Byzantine monuments on Italian soil were the products of a foreign style and that for some regions of Italy Byzantium was the “finishing school” for the indigenous art; but through the prevalent concept that the new style originated in a slow process of detachment from Byzantium, Byzantinism also early became a criterion of value and a principle of historical classification. And even today the greatness of Giotto's accomplishment is largely measured by the fact that he succeeded in overcoming Byzantinism. Yet we must admit that until now there has been no way of determining with precision whether, in spite of this liberation, Giotto's own creative spirit was not indebted to Byzantine art. For we see him mainly as the originator of the new style. And although, in the historical evaluation of his art, we tacitly admit the Byzantine sources of his inspiration, no concrete evidence of them has hitherto come to light. We find ourselves in the same position when confronted by other great artists of this transitional period.