Fra Bartolommeo and the Vision of Saint Bernard: An Examination of Savonarolan Influence

Abstract

Fra Bartolommeo was considered one of the finest High Renaissance painters from the late fifteenth-century to the beginning of the twentieth-century, but there has been a void in recent scholarship regarding his contributions to the period. A staunch supporter of Savonarola, his works are largely religious in nature. Following the taking of his vows, it is believed that Fra Bartolommeo intended to permanently retire from painting.

The Vision of Saint Bernard was the first painting executed by Fra Bartolommeo after his four-year retirement. At first glance, it is a typical depiction of a theme popular in Florence during the late fifteenth and early sixteenth-centuries. However, a reading of this image in connection with Fra Bartolommeo's mentor Savonarola, suggests the friar decided to return to his former vocation in order to promulgate Savonarolan ideas.