Most of Pontormo's work, however, is much stranger. He was an
artist of great originality, an introverted genius who spent
years locked away in his studio. Rejecting the classical canon
of beauty, he aimed to disturb the spectator. His 'Visitation'
in this church (2nd altar on the right), painted in 1528-30,
shows the Virgin and St Elizabeth embracing in the centre, while
the two flanking women gaze fixedly out at the spectator, oblivious
of their neighbours. Pontormo's brilliant blues, greens, pinks
and yellows, and the fact that the figures are placed right at
the front of the picture, add to the startling effect. Don't
miss the little cloister adjoining the church.
