Not much is known about the famous painter Giorgione, whose real name corresponds to Giorgio Zorzi; he rarely signed his works and, consequently, it was not always easy to reconstruct them and elaborate their symbols and meanings.
It is certain that he worked in Giovanni Bellini's workshop, where he learned the use of colors, the technique of their fusion and attention to landscapes.

In any case, despite the scarcity of information, he is considered the founder of Venetian painting; painting characterized by a new and innovative style that welcomes decidedly more natural landscapes and styles and moves away from the rigid patterns of the fifteenth century.

THE CASTELFRANCO PAINTING

The work, still kept inside the cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta e Liberale in Castelfranco Veneto, was commissioned by the Venetian leader Tuzio Costanzo to honor the death of his son who fell in battle.

The painting, which is clearly divided into two parts, represents the Madonna holding her Child seated on an elegant throne which, in turn, rests on a sarcophagus marked by the Costanzo family crest. Below, at his feet as two protectors, are St. Francis, with his simple robe, and San Nicasio with the flag representing the knights of Malta.

The background deserves particular attention, since it seems to want to divide the work even more clearly than what is already outlined by the characters. The lower and ground part, in fact, is characterized by a beautiful checkered floor in perspective, while the upper part (linked to the Madonna) is marked by a wide and deep landscape, wild and inhabited and, at times, almost heavenly.

On 10 December 1972 the shovel was stolen, only to be found after about three weeks; subsequently it underwent a long restoration and since 2006 it has finally been stable inside the Cathedral.

THE STORM

The storm, like many other works, can be divided into two parts. In the foreground, on the right, we see a half-naked woman intent on breastfeeding her newborn; his gaze, almost worried, seems to look directly at the viewer. On the left instead appears a man, almost certainly a soldier, intent on observing them, although there does not seem to be any sort of bond between the two.

Behind them, beyond that small piece of ruined wall still standing, a city appears in the distance (perhaps Castelfranco Veneto), just as it is about to be hit by a strong storm.

Since this work is still shrouded in mystery, there is no clear and unique interpretation: some historians, in fact, see the three protagonists as Adam and Eve holding little Cain in their arms, while others recognize in the scene the escape from Egypt of the Holy Family. In any case, the interpretation lies in the eyes of the viewer. The work is kept in the Accademia Galleries in Venice.

THE OLD

The work, currently preserved in the Accademia Galleries in Venice, is characterized by a dark background that highlights an elderly woman with a pink dress and a face marked by the passage of time.

The woman, whose gray hair escapes a worn bonnet, looks at the viewer with an expression of pain and seems to want to leave him a clear message; in fact, in his right hand he holds a piece of paper with the words “Col Tempo”. Over the years, in fact, everyone will age, time will mark the bodies and potentially everyone will become like her.