Scene
The composition features a lush landscape with a river, bridge, and a walled town receding into the distance. Dark storm clouds gather above the city, where a jagged bolt of lightning tears the sky.
The Tempest
Giorgione
1506
Figures
Two figures occupy the foreground: a nude or nearly nude woman nursing an infant on the right, and a young man holding a staff on the left.
Symbolism
Interpretations suggest the lightning represents unpredictable turns of fate, while the woman has been read as an allegory of charity and the columns as fortitude.
Craft
Giorgione painted the entire landscape first, then added the figures on top, reversing the typical Renaissance practice of prioritizing figures over the setting.
Impact
The painting shifted Venetian art toward a poetic, landscape-focused approach and continues to intrigue viewers with its unresolved subject.
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Craft
