The point in Titians Assumption of the Virgin

Titians early masterpiece which decorates the altar of Basilica di Santa Maria Gloriosa
dei Frari of Venice, is the perfect object of illustration in the painting-point relation.
The main focal point in this representation of the ascension of Virgin Mary, is the main
character itself. The centre is delimitated by the point where the axes meet, which is at the
exact centre of the image, where the Virgin Mary stands. The centre of interest is situated
on the folding of her garments. The character is pointed out by the use of colour, the red of
the material, where the eye is drawn.
The renascentist painting is divided in three registers: the apostles on the first, Mary
and cherubims on the second, God and the chorus on the third. The first and the second
point to the one in the middle. The general axes of the bodies, the axes of their extremities
and even the direction of their gaze, point toward the Virgin. We can observe a composition
in composition, in the first register, where the apostles create a pyramidal structure that is
pointing toward the central focal point. A pyramidal structured can be seen composed by
the three red elements in the picture. The Virgin Mary and the two apostles.
If we analyse the picture by the composition of the lower two registers, the centre of
interest resulting from the interconnection of the main axes, is the pointed hand of the
Apostol, at the transition between Earth and Heavens. The delimitation is accentuated by

the use of colour as well. The painting has classical harmonious proportions and its
symmetry is intensely visible, the apostles dressed in red, the rows of angels, the Virgin
Mary at the centre of the picture.
In the upper two registers, the circle is present in the form of the sun, the heavenly light
that bathes the Mother of Christ, as she is accepted in the spiritual realm. The arch of the
picture accentuates the shape and the cherubims help it take form even further.
The viewers perspective is one of a long-angle. We see the Virgin Mary, from the
perspective of the mortals. The vanishing point is somewhere in the exterior of the painting.
The hands and eyes of the main character point into the outer dimension of the open
composition. The composition is open, because the characters (the cherubims and the
apostles are not completely included in the picture, leaving the impression that the scene
has a continuation beyond the frame. The leg of the Apostol on the right, points to the not
shown space as well, but it can be seen as a counterpoint also. The complementary colours
are a counterpoint. The contrast between red and blue, shadows and lights, gold and black,
are all contrasts that accentuate the focal points.
The main centre point or focal point is the Virgin Mary, but secondary focal points are
the circle of golden light (which can also be seen as a representation of the Point), the light
that embraces some of the cherubims, the use of colour red and the pointed hand of the
Apostol on the right. This painting has focused all its elements to make the Virgin Mary
the centre of attention.