The Tempest
Dublin Core
Title
Description
The Tempest was created by Giorgione (Giorgio da Castelfranco) around 1510. The enigma behind this painting baffled many historians over the years and there are different interpretations of this painting. This wasn’t on display for many years as it traveled but in the rendition of the Gallerie dell'Accademia, it is now on display. What is very interesting about this painting is that there has been an x-ray analysis done that shows that there was supposed to be another woman where the man is now [1].
This painting is a classic Renaissance landscape. It sets a scene of two figures sitting by a river with a storm approaching. In the right foreground appears a nude woman breastfeeding her child and the baby is protected by her breast and her thigh. She is looking at the audience with a blank expression. There appears to be sunlight in the top left corner shining down onto the nude woman. The beautiful scenery, which is aesthetic variations of plants, along with the nude woman, is illuminated by sunlight that hasn’t been covered by the storm. The left foreground shows a man who is dressed very thrillingly, holding a stave and looking at the naked woman. You can tell he is a member of the Campagnia della Calza, a fraternity composed of young nobles in Venice, because of his two-toned hosiery [1]. He has a white shirt on, a red throw over that looks like a cape, and multi-colored pants. The red really pops in this painting because that is the only red shown throughout the artwork. He casts a shadow on the right side of his body due to the sun's angle right on top of him. In between the two figures appears a small pond which is shaded by the man. The river, on the other hand, is a lighter blue that has reflections of the wildlife on it.
The background reveals several things: a city, a stream that turns in a river, a bridge crossing over the river, and a storm with a lightning bolt appearing through the dark clouds. The figures do not seem very worried about this storm approaching. There is a shadow on the buildings in the background either representing rain or the gloomy darkness of the clouds. There have been several interpretations as to what this painting really represents. Marcantonio Michiel portrays this painting as a small landscape with a gypsy and a soldier [2]. To the more specific details, historians believe that the incoming storm has significance. It could have referred to the war of the League of Cambrai or from a biblical point of view, The Flight of Egypt [1]. The town is believed to be either Padua but other historians claim that it signifies Heaven.
[1] “The Tempest (1508).” The Tempest, Giorgione: Analysis, Meaning, 2020. http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/famous-paintings/tempest-giorgione.htm.
[2] Bosch, Lynette M. F. "GIORGIONE'S "TEMPEST" REVISITED." Source: Notes in the History of Art 10, no. 2 (1991): Page 7. Accessed September 30, 2020. http://www.jstor.org/stable/23202635.
This painting is a classic Renaissance landscape. It sets a scene of two figures sitting by a river with a storm approaching. In the right foreground appears a nude woman breastfeeding her child and the baby is protected by her breast and her thigh. She is looking at the audience with a blank expression. There appears to be sunlight in the top left corner shining down onto the nude woman. The beautiful scenery, which is aesthetic variations of plants, along with the nude woman, is illuminated by sunlight that hasn’t been covered by the storm. The left foreground shows a man who is dressed very thrillingly, holding a stave and looking at the naked woman. You can tell he is a member of the Campagnia della Calza, a fraternity composed of young nobles in Venice, because of his two-toned hosiery [1]. He has a white shirt on, a red throw over that looks like a cape, and multi-colored pants. The red really pops in this painting because that is the only red shown throughout the artwork. He casts a shadow on the right side of his body due to the sun's angle right on top of him. In between the two figures appears a small pond which is shaded by the man. The river, on the other hand, is a lighter blue that has reflections of the wildlife on it.
The background reveals several things: a city, a stream that turns in a river, a bridge crossing over the river, and a storm with a lightning bolt appearing through the dark clouds. The figures do not seem very worried about this storm approaching. There is a shadow on the buildings in the background either representing rain or the gloomy darkness of the clouds. There have been several interpretations as to what this painting really represents. Marcantonio Michiel portrays this painting as a small landscape with a gypsy and a soldier [2]. To the more specific details, historians believe that the incoming storm has significance. It could have referred to the war of the League of Cambrai or from a biblical point of view, The Flight of Egypt [1]. The town is believed to be either Padua but other historians claim that it signifies Heaven.
[1] “The Tempest (1508).” The Tempest, Giorgione: Analysis, Meaning, 2020. http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/famous-paintings/tempest-giorgione.htm.
[2] Bosch, Lynette M. F. "GIORGIONE'S "TEMPEST" REVISITED." Source: Notes in the History of Art 10, no. 2 (1991): Page 7. Accessed September 30, 2020. http://www.jstor.org/stable/23202635.
Creator
Giorgione (Giorgio da Castelfranco)
Source
Bosch, Lynette M. F. "GIORGIONE'S "TEMPEST" REVISITED." Source: Notes in the History of Art 10, no. 2 (1991): 7-15. Accessed September 30, 2020. http://www.jstor.org/stable/23202635.
Dr. James R. Jewitt, “Giorgione, The Tempest,” Smarthistory, April 17, 2020, https://smarthistory.org/giorgione-the-tempest/.
Giorgione (Giorgio da Castelfranco), Venetian, ca. 1477-1510. ca. 1510. The Tempest. https://library.artstor.org/asset/AHSC_ORPHANS_1071313534.
“The Tempest (1508).” The Tempest, Giorgione: Analysis, Meaning, 2020. http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/famous-paintings/tempest-giorgione.htm.
Dr. James R. Jewitt, “Giorgione, The Tempest,” Smarthistory, April 17, 2020, https://smarthistory.org/giorgione-the-tempest/.
Giorgione (Giorgio da Castelfranco), Venetian, ca. 1477-1510. ca. 1510. The Tempest. https://library.artstor.org/asset/AHSC_ORPHANS_1071313534.
“The Tempest (1508).” The Tempest, Giorgione: Analysis, Meaning, 2020. http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/famous-paintings/tempest-giorgione.htm.
Publisher
Commissioner : Gabriele Vendramin
Image Source : Giorgione (Giorgio da Castelfranco), Venetian, ca. 1477-1510. ca. 1510. The Tempest. https://library.artstor.org/asset/AHSC_ORPHANS_1071313534.
Image Source : Giorgione (Giorgio da Castelfranco), Venetian, ca. 1477-1510. ca. 1510. The Tempest. https://library.artstor.org/asset/AHSC_ORPHANS_1071313534.
Date
ca. 1510
Contributor
Seamus Harding
Rights
Use of this image is in accordance with the Artstor Terms & Conditions
Data : Art Images for College Teaching
Image Source : Giorgione (Giorgio da Castelfranco), Venetian, ca. 1477-1510. ca. 1510. The Tempest. https://library.artstor.org/asset/AHSC_ORPHANS_1071313534.
Data : Art Images for College Teaching
Image Source : Giorgione (Giorgio da Castelfranco), Venetian, ca. 1477-1510. ca. 1510. The Tempest. https://library.artstor.org/asset/AHSC_ORPHANS_1071313534.
Format
Oil on canvas, 31x29"
Type
painting
Coverage
Galleria dell"Accademia, Venice, Italy
Citation
Giorgione (Giorgio da Castelfranco), “The Tempest,” ARTHIST 89S - Visual Culture of Venice - Fall 2020, accessed October 22, 2026, https://venice.dahvc.org/fall-2020/items/show/71.