Address: Piazza Santa Maria Novella>
The monumental complex of the cloister of
Santa Maria Novella adjoins the
church and is full of important paintings. Begun in 1340 and
completed internally in 1360, the cloisters were designed by Fra'
Sisto and Fra' Ristoro. They are among the most beautiful
examples of Italian Gothic architecture. Within the doorway to
the right of the church
facade is the Chiostro Verde with its strong but harmonious
proportions. It derived its name from the frescoes painted in
"terra verde". Among the artists involved in the
decorations during the first half of the fifteenth century the
most famous name is that of Paolo Uccello (1397-1494). One of the
greatest Florentine Renaissance masters, Uccello painted some of
his best works here, including the Flood and the Sacrifice of
Noah. The first is notable for its atmosphere of cosmic disaster,
the second for the vertiginous perspective effects in which
Uccello was so adept.
The Cloister gives access to the Refectory, to the Large Cloister
with its late sixteenth century decorations, and on the north
side, the "Cappellone degli Spagnoli". During the
sixteenth century this was the chapter house, and took its
present name from the Spanish followers of Cosimo 1 st's wife
Eleonora of Toledo who met there.
This large interior still houses Andrea di Bonaiuto's complex and
grandiose frescoes of the mid-fourteenth century which exalt the
work of the Dominicans (to whom the church belonged) through the
major Christian themes. In the fresco of the Church Militant one
can see Arnolfo's original project for the Florence
Duomo included as the cathedral in
the background.
Connected with the Chiostro Verde is the Chiostrino dei Morti and
the Strozzi Chapel, also decorated with fourteenth century
frescoes.
