Christ Among the Doctors 1320

Giotto painted this fresco, Christ Among the Doctors, at the Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi. Fresco is painting directly onto a wall when the plaster is still wet, which means the work is literally part of the architecture. The appeal of fresco lies in the immediacy of the process. Pigments are ground and mixed only with water, then brushed onto the prepared surface. You must know exactly what you are doing. Because when the plaster dries, the pigment is bound into it, and becomes permanent. Look closely, and you can see each individual brushstroke. In Christ Among the Doctors, the pigments appear subtle but luminous. Giotto’s revolutionary naturalism emerges not just from his compositional skill, but also from this material relationship with the wall itself. He created a new kind of painting – one that truly merges with its surroundings. This was the beginning of a new era in art making.