“Ah! Botticelli! Botticelli! The elegance and grace of suffering passion, the profound feeling of sadness in voluptuousness! All our modern soul apprehended and transposed, with the most disquieting enchantment that ever came from an artist’s creation.”
- Writer Emile Zola’s Narcisse character
This year in TALONS, I have chosen Sandro Botticelli to be my eminent person. Sandro Botticelli had a love for art; he challenged the boundaries of what was possible. He took many risks experimenting with different ideas to enhance his artwork. Sandro was born in Florence, Italy, in the year 1445; he would grow up to become one of the most influential artists in the renaissance era. Just like Sandro Botticelli, I grew up with art. When I was young, I had always dreamed of becoming an artist; I had dreamed of being free. Sandro never let his art become shackled by the societal boundaries of art; the Christian art form that most within the renaissance period had become accustomed to, even creating the first large-scale painting in Europe that wasn’t Christian. This painting would later become known as the Primavera.
Sandro was brave and courageous, someone who pushed the boundaries and limits of art. My goal in TALONS this year is to take more risks and step outside my comfort zone. One day I aspire to have the same amount of courage and bravery as Sandro Botticelli. This process may not be complete in a day, maybe not even within a year, but I will try my best to follow the example made by the artist Sandro Botticelli. This year, I want to be open to new experiences, and take more risks related to my learning.
Barriers that I may have while connecting with Sandro include religion, geography, and race. I can address these barriers by acknowledging that everyone has differences. Art gives us a way to express our emotions; art brings people together, no matter what race or religion. Art is a universal language.
At the time, many artists would paint scenes from the bible, but Sandro was unique. Sandro paved the way for future generations of artists; his style made a lasting impact on the world. Sandro was a brilliant artist; he pushed the limits and boundaries of renaissance art. 10 or 50 years from now, Sandro is known as a revolutionary artist, who changed the course of art during the renaissance period. Sandro’s journey as an artist was long and hard; it took a lot of time and effort for him to stand out. At the time, there wasn’t much variation in art, but Sandro stood out; he challenged the boundaries of renaissance art, creating a new style. Sandro wanted to become recognized as an artist, and probably feared he would become a tanner like his dad, but Botticelli was a dreamer.
I believe Sandro is worth researching; he took risks; he was unique and brought his type of flare into his art style every day. He didn’t conform to societal expectations of art. Botticelli’s story tells us that life is too short; if we never take any risks, we’ll never get past where we are now.
For my eminent presentation, I hope to portray Sandro as an artist with dreams and hopes, with a passion for artistic creativity. This journey will be difficult, and it certainly won’t be short, but I can’t wait to see where this piece takes me.