Leon Battista Alberti and Nicholas Cusanus

Providing a fresh evaluation of Alberti¿s text On Painting (1435), along with comparisons to various works of Nicholas Cusanus - particularly his Vision of God (1450) - this study reveals a shared epistemology of vision. And, the author argues, it is one that reflects a more deeply Christian Neoplatonic ideal than is typically accorded Alberti. Whether regarding his purpose in teaching the use of a geometric single point perspective system, or more broadly in rendering forms naturalistically, the emphasis leans toward the ideal of Renaissance art as highly rational. There remains the impression that the principle aim of the painter is to create objective, even illusionistic images. A close reading of Alberti¿s text, however, including some adjustments in translation, points rather towards an emphasis on discerning the spiritual in the material. Alberti¿s use of the tropes Minerva and Narcissus, for example, indicates the opposing characteristics of wisdom and sense certainty that funct