Le sfumature dell’Assoluto: L’oro come espressione dell’Infinito dal Medioevo alla contemporaneità

The research aims to investigate the existing relationship between the representation of the Absolute and the colouristic effects rendered by the use of gold in painting. The possibility to show the Absolute essence through figurative language, in its secular as well as in its religious meaning, has always been a privileged objective of artists. If contemporary aesthetics, characterised by radical processes of secularisation, addresses the theme through the analysis of specific chromatic tones, this study intends to emphasise the use of gold and how it modifies the perception of the colours juxtaposed with it, by giving unexpected luminist solutions. To this end, the research will focus on the context of medieval and early Renaissance painting. Subsequently, an attempt to reflect on the adoption of similar expedients in contemporary artistic expressions will be developed