Titian’s great high altarpiece for the great Franciscan Basilica of Venice known as the “Frari” marked a turning point in the artist’s career. Painted in 1515, the massive oil on canvas painting (6.9m x 3.6m/22.6ft x 12ft.) shows that Titian was aware of the innovations introduced by central Italian painters such as Raphael and Michelangelo. Instead of a calm, meditative Madonna, Titian’s painting is a shimmering mass of movement and energy. So much so, that the Franciscans were initially reluctant to put it on display. Titian signed the work on the sarcophagus at the bottom of the painting. Buona visione!