here depicted the Virgin in the act of sewing, while the Child, who is dressed and seated before her, presents her with a bird. This work, though small, is finished with so much care as to merit no less commendation than the larger and more elaborate works of the master. When this oratory was finished and his affairs settled, Stefano repaired to Pistoja, whither he had been summoned by the then rulers, to paint the chapel of St. James. This he commenced in the year 1346, depicting a figure of God the Father, with certain apostles, on the ceiling, and representing events from the life of St. James on the walls. Among these, is that incident wherein the wife of Zebedee and mother of the apostles requires from Jesus Christ that he will place her two sons, the one on his right hand, and the other on his left, in the kingdom of his Father. Near to this, is the decapitation of the saint, very finely painted.[1]
It has been supposed that Maso, called Giottino, of whom we shall speak hereafter, was the son of this Stefano, although many, led by the resemblance of the name, believe him to have been a son of Giotto; but I am more disposed, by certain memoranda that I have seen, and by trustworthy records preserved by Lorenzo Ghiberti and Domenico del Ghirlandajo, to believe him a son of Stefano, than of Giotto.[2] Be this as it may, let us return to Stefano, of whom it may be truly said, that he contributed more than any other, Giotto excepted, to the amelioration of art: his powers of invention were richer and more varied, his colouring was more harmonious, and his tints were more softly blended; while, more than all, in care and diligence he surpassed all other artists.ì And with respect to his foreshortening, although he is defective on this point, as I have said, because of the great difficulties to be encountered, yet, more gratitude is due to him who is the first to investigate and conquer the worst
- ↑ The paintings of which Vasari here speaks, and which Baldinucci also attributes to Stefano, should be ascribed, according to the ancient documents cited by Ciampi, to Alessio d’Andrea, and Bonaccorso di Cino,Florentine painters, who were invited to Pistoja in 1347.—Masselli.
- ↑ Baldinucci speaks of Tommaso, without hesitation, as a son of Stefano.—Schorn, from the Roman edition of 1759.
possession of Signor Ranieri Grassi, of Pisa, which he believes, with reason, to be a copy of this work,—the Virgin and Child being represented exactly as here described by Vasari.—Ed. Flor. 1846.
