Passerini Assumption

Andrea del Sarto's Passerini Assumption from around 1526 was commissioned by the Passerini family for their chapel. Del Sarto's treatment of the Assumption theme demonstrates his late style, when his warm, atmospheric colorism reached its fullest expression Oil on canvas, increasingly preferred over panel in the sixteenth century, offered greater flexibility for large-scale compositions The work is now in the collection of Galleria Palatina in Florence.

The rich, warm palette and fluid brushwork create an atmosphere of celestial radiance, with the ascending Virgin's flowing drapery and the animated apostles below demonstrating del Sarto's consummate handling of complex multi-figure compositions.