Transfiguration of Christ 1480

Giovanni Bellini painted the Transfiguration of Christ, now in the National Museum of Capodimonte in Naples, in the late 15th century. Bellini’s representation of Christ’s transfiguration speaks to the prominent role of religious imagery in Venetian society. Note that the painting was commissioned for the refectory of a church in Vicenza. It therefore had a functional purpose, as a work of art meant to inspire contemplation in the monks during their meals. But Bellini had also to contend with the tastes of his patrons, and the influence of antique statuary on the Renaissance imagination. What are we to make of the disciples, struck down as if by a thunderbolt? Bellini seems to be telling us that the divine can only be revealed through suffering. To truly understand Bellini’s art, one must look to the religious and cultural history of Venice at the time. Only through this can we appreciate Bellini’s work as not just a painting, but a window into the soul of a city.