Debate That as Annunciation scenes (of the angel Gabriel telling the Virgin Mary she will bear the son of god) deal with the same subject, they will be very similar i.e. “Seen one Annunciation scene, seen them all.” Negative Team Hi, I am Camilla, the leader of the negative team summing up our case that if you have seen one annunciation scene you’ve certainly not seen them all. First I would like to recap in some detail the 2 sides to this debate. Affirmative Team The affirmative team claim that as Annunciation scenes shows the archangel Gabriel entering the house of the Virgin Mary to communicate to her that she will soon bear the child Jesus, whose name means the "Savior." The scenes must be similar, repetitive, lacking in originality, static, they are all mere bland replicas of the same story, they have taken a narrow point of view dealing with works only up to the 16th century. They have failed to consider the general or original Annunciation style e.g. some well known iconography, amount of gold used and medium. Negative Team We however disagree, if you look at Annunciation scenes from the 19th century onwards, by artists of different gender, ethnicity and beliefs it is possible to see that different effects have been created through settings, color, gesture and figures. Even though the subject is the same, there are features which are innovative, different which bring out the artists own distinctive style in which they believe is their own personal painting on what the Annunciation really is. Even though these 'modern' artists have been given influence from early renaissance artists it doesn’t mean that they cannot incorporate their own style within their paintings. Leading to conclude you that if you have seen one Annunciation scene you most definitely haven’t seen them all. Affirmative Team We would like to rebut the argument thank you. Negative Team Yes Affirmative Team Well in Martinis Annunciation for instance there is the marble floor, the archangel, the pot of lilies, the half closed book of Mary and her throne, and the gold background. This is very much the same as every other Annunciation scene I have seen..don’t you agree? There is no way these “modern” artists have taken a completely different look on the Annunciation and made it unique to the original painters like Martini. Negative Team Please go more in depth with what your trying to say. I would certainly like to hear more. Affirmative Team He has brought some realistic details into the painting by doing so. Martini has chosen a distinct and singular moment of the Annunciation to depict. His work is considered an absolute masterpiece and one of the greatest examples of Sienese Gothic painting, characterized by the wonderful elegance of both line and color. The Archangel has just touched ground in front of the Virgin as shown by his unfold wings and his swirling mantle. The scene seems a theatrical performance, as stressed by the comic strip like sentence in the middle of the composition with the greeting of the angel. Negative Team Can I just interrupt you there!! From what I am seeing right now, all of the figures to me are giving the same message as every other painting ive seen. I am starting to get very bored right now. Affirmative Team Well the Virgin Mary is portrayed almost surprised and frightened by the sudden appearance. Her movement, so prim and elegant, adds a certain effect of sophistication to the work. The altarpiece has a gold background, so bound to tradition, and still very much in demand for the depictions of sacred stories. These types of artists adhered therefore to what customers required. Well for this purpose Martini included some delightful details in the main scene as the marble floor, the mantle of the archangel, the pot of lilies, the half-closed book of Mary and her throne, all of which suggest a real space, otherwise penalized by the gold background. The painting is then fully Sienese for the beauty and the gentleness of lines and colors, just in opposition to Florentine style, more related to the volume and the shape. Martini has chosen a distinct and singular moment of the Annunciation to depict. The immediacy of the still-flowing cloak of Gabriel, the presence of the greeting that became a prayer and the holy distress of the Virgin are key aspects to the religious and artistic power and foresight that Simone Martini employed when executing this master altarpiece. His style elaborated Giotto, pushing the level of detail and attention to move even further. Affirmative Team Maybe you could convince me that all Annunciation scenes are not the same with your next paintings but I highly doubt it. My opinion is very strong towards this and I wont be changing my mind any time soon. Negative Team Well now to recap our argument based on research. Affirmative Team Go ahead. Negative Team First let us go back to John Colliers work who is an American artist born on June 26, 1948.