Born Guido di Pietro c. 1395, taking the name Fra Giovanni when he entered the Dominican order c. 1422, he is now known to us as Fra Angelico, the “Angelic Painter”.  Born outside of Florence in Italy, Fra Angelico began painting before entering the convent of San Domenico in Fiesole.  He was a prolific artist of the early Italian Renaissance, who worked small scale on manuscript illuminations, large scale on monumental frescos, and everything in between.

The Altarpiece shown here is a modest size, approximately 5 by 6 feet, that was in Fra Angelico’s convent in Fiesole until 1611 when it was sold to the Spanish Monarchy and became part of the royal collections.  It was moved to the Prado Museum in Madrid in 1861.  This magnificent work was painted in luminous egg tempera and still retains its original frame.  The predella beneath the painting depicts the life of the Virgin Mary, from her birth to her dormition.

The painting is divided into three sections.  On the left we see Adam and Eve in the garden after the fall.  The dense foliage includes red roses beneath their feet symbolizing the blood of the passion and a palm tree growing in the garden, indicative of the salvation that is to come.  In the center of the composition is the Angel Gabriel reverently bowing before the Blessed Virgin Mary, who is on the right.  A ray of heavenly light from the hands of God the Father in the upper left hand corner, pierces diagonally through the Garden, into the dwelling and to the Virgin.  In the midst of this light passes the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove.

Fra Angelico painted with such intricacy and precision as seen in the archangel’s wings, the guilt embroidery, the drapery of the fabrics, and the decorative details of the architecture.  This painting of salvation history is just one of his many works that have survived and can be seen in collections throughout the world.