Cimabue is considered the “father of Western painting,” yet he has long been overshadowed by successive Early Italian Renaissance artists. The revelatory new exhibition at the Louvre, titled “A New Look at Cimabue: At the Origins of Italian Painting” (through May 12, 2025), restores Cimabue and his work in the art historical canon both literally and figuratively.
An Elusive Artist
Little is documented about Cimabue’s life, though he was mentioned in the famous “Divine Comedy” by his contemporary Dante Alighieri. Only 15 Cimabue artworks are known today. His birth name was Cenni di Pepo, but he went by Cimabue for an unknown reason. Historians believe that he was born in Florence, Italy around 1240 and probably died in Pisa, Italy about 1301 or 1302. This Tuscan artist has been mostly associated with monumental works, such as frescos, crucifixes, and altarpieces. The partially unearthed diptych panels are unusual for their small scale.
Cimabue’s artistry was revolutionary in 13th-century Italy. At the time, Byzantine painting, with its highly stylized, flat imagery and gold-leaf background, was the prevailing convention. Renderings of divine beings were purposefully unrealistic, emphasizing that they are not human. In contrast, Cimabue was interested in naturalism, which is reflected in his depiction of objects, three-dimensional space, and figures, both in subtle physicality and emotional expressions.
Cimabue’s Diptych
French scholars have proposed a reconstruction of Cimabue’s diptych with the three identified works on the left-hand side. The overall theme was probably the life and death of Christ. Experts believe that the artwork consisted of two hinged panels with eight individual paintings. It was commissioned for private devotional use by a patron in Pisa, but further details are elusive.
Scholars suppose that the top left panel of the diptych was London’s The National Gallery’s “The Virgin and Child With Two Angels.” In the exhibit, the Louvre calls it “La Petite Maestà,” contrasting its scale with their own monumental version of the Madonna and Child in “majesty.” In 2000, this panel was discovered and authenticated in England. This remarkable occurrence facilitated the confirmation that the Frick’s work was indeed a Cimabue.
Before The National Gallery’s acquisition, “The Virgin and Child With Two Angels” was an anonymous artwork in a private collection in Suffolk, England. During a routine evaluation of the contents of the country house in which it resided, a Sotheby’s employee recognized that it might be a Cimabue. Experts at The National Gallery confirmed it, based on comparisons with the Louvre’s “Maestà.” The work was set to be auctioned until a deal was struck that saved the picture for the nation. While it would likely have sold for more, it was given to The National Gallery as payment of 7.2 million pounds ($9.16 million) in death duties.
A museum curator connected the work with the one at The Frick—both have the same gilded punched decoration. Subsequent technical and art historical studies have concluded that the two artworks were made as part of the same overall piece. At some unknown time, the diptych was cut apart and individual panels were sold.
“The Virgin and Child With Two Angels” is one of the oldest works in The National Gallery’s collection. The Gallery describes how the painting embodies Cimabue’s originality:
“This scene is based on a Byzantine model which Cimabue has altered: he has made the throne three-dimensional and included an affectionate gesture between mother and child. These adjustments catered to Western Christians for whom a personal relationship with God was key.” Damage is visible at the left and upper edges, clueing curators to its location in the diptych; the other edges are undisturbed, which indicates it had been framed with other scenes that all had been painted on the same wood panel.
The third piece of the puzzle was discovered in 2019 in a French kitchen. A panel, “Christ Mocked,” hung over the stove of an elderly woman. She planned to throw it out, but a valuator inspected the contents of the home before she had a chance to do so. Upon seeing the panel, the appraiser was immediately struck by it and recognized its importance. Its worth was estimated at up to 400,000 euros ($420,818) on the belief it was an example of Italian primitivism. It was sent to Paris for further examination, where it was authenticated as a rare Cimabue.
Later that year, the panel was auctioned with an estimate of 4 million to 6 million euros ($4.21 million to $6.31 million). It sold for an astounding 24 million euros ($25.25 million). The country’s culture ministry declared it a “national treasure,” placing a temporary export ban on it, which gave the Louvre 30 months to raise the funds to keep it in the country for public viewing. In 2023, the Museum was able to acquire the work. Its restoration has removed the accumulation of dirt, resulting in a brightened, luminous work akin to the cleaned revelation of the Louvre’s “Maestà.”
“Christ Mocked” shows a blindfolded Jesus before his crucifixion. He is surrounded by soldiers mocking him. As in The Frick’s panel, towers on either side frame the scene. In the Louvre’s work, multiple figures overlap creating spatial depth. A radical gesture made by Cimabue was to clothe the figures in 13th-century clothes instead of the garb of antiquity, encouraging the contemporaneous viewer to connect with the scene. Cimabue’s precise painting realistically captures tense muscles, which conveys movement and lifelike people.
Art historians hope that further panels will be uncovered. They feel a further discovery would most likely be the final panel on the left side of the diptych, since the other three have been found. They suspect that the narrative is the Kiss of Judas. Any confirmed new panel would be met with excitement and greatly expand the understanding of Cimabue and his genius in translating textiles, architecture, objects, and characters from real life into paint.
“A New Look at Cimabue: At the Origins of Italian Painting” offers revelations with the restoration of important works by the artist. The exhibit makes the case for the profound influence Cimabue had on Giotto, reputed to have been his student, and Duccio di Buoninsegna. These artists were Cimabue’s heirs and furthered his advances in realism.
Over the centuries, Cimabues have weathered floods, earthquakes, and battles. Even The National Gallery’s “The Virgin and Child with Two Angels” survived a Suffolk fire in the 1920s. Today, Cimabues are celebrated as treasures.
