Bacchiacca Desco da Parto in Exhibition
Recently conserved painting to be part of Smart Museum of Art's exhibition
The recently conserved "Ghismonda with the heart of Guiscardo [obverse]; Coat of Arms [reverse]" (c.1520) by Francesco d’Ubertino Verdi (known as Bacchiacca) from the Lowe Art Museum will be part of the Smart Museum of Art's upcoming exhibition, "Lust, Love, and Loss in Renaissance Europe". The exhibition explores themes of passion, violence, and virtue and how they emerge as fundamental, intertwined elements in artworks during the Renaissance. This double-sided painting is a desco da parto, or a birth tray, which is a commemorative plate or tray presented to the mother of a newborn child with food or drink after a successful birth in Renaissance Florence and Siena. Browse the conserved artwork page to learn more about the painting's materials and techniques, including some fascinating underdrawing the artist used to create perspective while planning the composition.
