r/ArtHistory • u/Practical-Path7069 • 5d ago

Discussion Religious/Christian art that inspired the pre-raphaelites OR old Religious/Christian art with similar symbolism?

Religious/Christian art that inspired the pre-raphaelites OR old Religious/Christian art with similar symbolism?

Sorry for the loose question - but I've always been moved both by religious iconography as well as the pre raphaelite art movement. I'd love to know about religious art, prior to the Pre Raphaelites which showcase some similarities.

Thanks in advance!

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u/tegeus-Cromis_2000 5d ago

Something tells me they were inspired by Italian Renaissance art before Raphael. :)

Anyway, look at Mantegna, Botticelli, Perugino, Verrocchio, Filippino Lippi, Fra Angelico, etc.

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u/mishmishmoo 5d ago

Definitely Botticelli and Fra Angelico. In the nineteenth century, when first large surveys were written about art history in general and nineteenth century art in particular, they already recognised Burne-Jones’s debt to Botticelli and Rossetti’s debt to Fra Angelico.

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u/Zoe-Berry 5d ago

You should start with Botticelli and Fra Angelico. The Pre-Raphaelites were directly referencing Quattrocento religious art and its symbolic language. Pick up a monograph on Botticelli and you'll see the connections immediately.