MICHELE DAMASCENO E LA RIMODULAZIONE DELLE STRATEGIE DI VISUALIZZAZIONE DELL’ALDILÀ: CONTINUITÀ E DISCONTINUITÀ NELLE FORMULE DI DESCRIZIONE DELLA SCUOLA CRETESE

The present research proceeds from the problems surrounding the acculturation for contact that invests the island of Crete, which followed its entry into Venetian rule. One of the best exponents of the Cretan school of painting, Michael Damaskinos attempts to reconcile the aesthetic values of Eastern Roman production with the recent innovations introduced by Venetian painting with its colorism and – at the same time – placed by the products of Italian mannerism. We selected a small number of works from Michael’s production, which are considered paradigmatic for understanding the complex construction process of his works. In this way, we show how his pictographic works are the result of the summation of different representational formulas and the expression of a long process of acculturation.