Saint John the Baptist Preaching

This panel of Saint John the Baptist Preaching by Lorenzo Veneziano places one of the most important Venetian painters of the Trecento in dialogue with the narrative painting traditions of mainland Italy. Lorenzo Veneziano, active from 1356 to about 1379, was instrumental in transforming Venetian painting from its Byzantine roots toward a more Gothic and naturalistic idiom. The preaching of the Baptist was a subject that allowed artists to explore crowd composition and landscape settings within a devotional framework.

Painted in egg tempera and gold leaf on panel, the scene arranges the preaching Baptist and his audience in a landscape setting that reveals Lorenzo's evolving interest in spatial depth. The figures display the elegant, sinuous drapery and refined color sense that characterize the best Venetian Gothic painting.