In “Lamentation,” Giotto depicts the dead Christ in the arms of the Virgin Mary, both surrounded by grieving people. The two holy figures, however, are rendered with “the scale being in all respects human,” and emphasized through the other figures looking down in grief on them. Human tragedy is conveyed through various facial expressions, gestures, and postures to suggest unique emotions among the individuals mourning over the dead body of Christ. To both sides of the scene, the standing figures enclose the compositional space, thus giving the feel of the unremitting pain and suffering of the moment. In the foreground, the two hooded figures seated with their backs to the viewer create an illusion of depth as well as convey a sense of universal sorrow. —Diana Guber, “Giotto’s Religious Scenes “In All Respects Human,” 2020.
Giotto di Bondone,”Lamentation,” ca. 1305. Fresco in the Arena Chapel, Padua.