Mannerism by Pontormo (Florence, Italy — c. 1520) — Questions and answers

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What is Pontormo's masterpiece, 'The Deposition from the Cross,' also known as?

Choices

  1. 'The Descent from the Cross' ✓
  2. 'The Agony in the Garden'
  3. 'The Swirling Composition'
  4. 'The Capponi Chapel'

Answer: 'The Descent from the Cross'

From page 1

How did the Florentine plague affect Pontormo's art?

Choices

  1. It made his art cheerful and bright.
  2. It led him to paint portraits of famous doctors.
  3. It added a haunting quality and sense of melancholy to his works. ✓
  4. It made him stop painting altogether.

Answer: It added a haunting quality and sense of melancholy to his works.

From page 3

What was the result of Pontormo's rivalry with Rosso Fiorentino?

Choices

  1. They stopped talking to each other.
  2. It made Pontormo's art less daring.
  3. It encouraged Pontormo to refine his unique style and become a better artist. ✓
  4. They decided to work on a painting together.

Answer: It encouraged Pontormo to refine his unique style and become a better artist.

From page 4

What did the Capponi family want Pontormo to create for their chapel?

Choices

  1. A simple family portrait.
  2. A masterpiece that reflected their piety and status. ✓
  3. A painting of a beautiful landscape.
  4. A small sculpture for the altar.

Answer: A masterpiece that reflected their piety and status.

From page 5

How did Pontormo use colors in 'The Descent from the Cross'?

Choices

  1. He used only dark and muted colors.
  2. He abandoned harmonious colors for jarring, unnatural hues like pinks and yellows. ✓
  3. He stuck to the traditional, calm colors of the High Renaissance.
  4. He used only blue and white colors.

Answer: He abandoned harmonious colors for jarring, unnatural hues like pinks and yellows.

From page 6

How did Pontormo draw the figures in 'The Descent from the Cross' to show strong feelings?

Choices

  1. He made them perfectly proportioned like classical statues.
  2. He drew them very small and far away.
  3. He made them elongated and distorted to show inner turmoil and spiritual torment. ✓
  4. He drew them with happy, smiling faces.

Answer: He made them elongated and distorted to show inner turmoil and spiritual torment.

From page 7

What is missing from 'The Descent from the Cross' that makes the figures seem to float?

Choices

  1. A clear ground plane ✓
  2. Bright colors
  3. A border around the painting
  4. Many clouds

Answer: A clear ground plane

From page 8

What did completing 'The Descent from the Cross' help Pontormo become?

Choices

  1. A sculptor like Michelangelo.
  2. A leading figure of the Mannerist movement. ✓
  3. A patron of other artists.
  4. A traditional Renaissance painter.

Answer: A leading figure of the Mannerist movement.

From page 9

Where can people still see Pontormo's 'Descent from the Cross' today?

Choices

  1. In the Capponi Chapel of Santa Felicita. ✓
  2. In a museum in Rome.
  3. In Pontormo's old studio.
  4. At an art show that travels the world.

Answer: In the Capponi Chapel of Santa Felicita.

From page 10