"expression of certain emotions is as poignant as any in the whole range of art, but it is never ecstatic or excessive; with him sorrow is never desperate, compassion never effeminate, nor does the tenderest affection ever verge on sentimentality."

Giovanni Bellini Art See all quotes by Giovanni Bellini →

React to this quote

More by Giovanni Bellini

“The affectionate relationship maintained by the brothers was so legendary that even Vasari received reports of it. In his Vite, Vasari wrote that after the death of his brother Gentile, whom he had always loved with great tenderness, Giovanni remained behind as his ‘widow’, so to speak, a metaphor suggestive of both sadness and isolation. Gentile named Giovanni as his heir, bequeathing to him their father’s book of drawings, which had remained in Venice, and entrusting him with the completion of his painting of St Mark Preaching in Alexandria (for the Scuola Grande di San Marco.”

Resonant Thoughts

"You had hoped that the beloved and noble images flowing from your heart would serve as a river to carry to God many another heart! But, as you see, people are afraid of getting wet."

— Léon Bloy

Literature1846–1917

#love

"Having engaged in vigorous and passionate debate while on their honeymoon trip from New York, they had arrived at the startling—and rather liberating—conclusion that the marriage itself was not at all…"

— M. K. Hobson

Literature1969

#love

"Love is the path and road of our Prophet"

— Mawlana Jalaluddin Rumi

Literature1207–1273

#love

"It is not murder which is forgiven but the killer, his person as it appears in circumstances and intentions. The trouble with the Nazi criminals was precisely that they renounced voluntarily all perso…"

— Hannah Arendt

Philosophy1906–1975

#time