World Kindness Day: Art's Most Tender Gestures
World Kindness Day, celebrated on November 13, originated in 1988 with the Japan Small Kindness Movement in Tokyo before becoming an international observance. The day encourages small acts of kindness, such as sending a nice message or helping those in need. Artribune highlights gentle gestures in art history: Saint Francis giving his cloak to a poor man in Giotto's Assisi fresco; the Archangel Gabriel offering an olive branch to Mary in Simone Martini's Annunciation; Grace draping flowers over Venus in Botticelli's work; Flora scattering flowers in Botticelli's Primavera; Venus combing Cupid in Giovanni da San Giovanni's painting; a lady tenderly holding an ermine in Leonardo's masterpiece; and a small flower sprouting among ruins in Picasso's Guernica as a symbol of hope.
Key facts
- World Kindness Day is celebrated on November 13.
- The Japan Small Kindness Movement was founded in Tokyo in 1988.
- The day promotes small acts of kindness like sending a nice message or listening.
- Artribune selected artworks featuring kind gestures.
- Giotto's fresco at the Basilica of Assisi shows Saint Francis giving his cloak to a poor man.
- Simone Martini's Annunciation depicts the Archangel Gabriel offering an olive branch to Mary.
- Botticelli's Primavera includes Flora scattering flowers.
- Picasso's Guernica includes a small flower as a symbol of hope among ruins.
Entities
Artists
- Giotto
- Simone Martini
- Sandro Botticelli
- Giovanni da San Giovanni
- Leonardo da Vinci
- Pablo Picasso
Institutions
- Artribune
- Basilica of Assisi
Locations
- Tokyo
- Japan
- Assisi
- Italy