''The Flagellation of Christ'' is a painting by the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

Baroque painter

Caravaggio Michelangelo Merisi (Michele Angelo Merigi or Amerighi) da Caravaggio, known as simply Caravaggio (, , ; 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. During the final four years of hi ...

, now in the

Museo Nazionale di Capodimonte Museo di Capodimonte is an art museum located in the Palace of Capodimonte, a grand Bourbon palazzo in Naples, Italy. The museum is the prime repository of Neapolitan painting and decorative art, with several important works from other Italian ...

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

. It is dated to 1607, and may have been reworked by the artist in 1610. It is not to be confused with '' Christ at the Column'', another ''Flagellation'' by Caravaggio of the same period.

Description

According to art biographer

Gian Pietro Bellori Giovanni Pietro Bellori (15 January 1613 – 19 February 1696), also known as Giovan Pietro Bellori or Gian Pietro Bellori, was an Italian painter and antiquarian, but, more famously, a prominent biographer of artists of the 17th century, equiva ...

(1672), this work was commissioned by the di Franco (or de Franchis) family for a chapel in the church of

San Domenico Maggiore San Domenico Maggiore is a Gothic, Roman Catholic church and monastery, founded by the friars of the Dominican Order, and located in the square of the same name in the historic center of Naples. History The square is bordered by a street/alle ...

in Naples. The family were connected with the Confraternity of the

Pio Monte della Misericordia The Pio Monte della Misericordia is a church in the historic center of Naples, southern Italy. It is famous for its art works, including Caravaggio's '' The Seven Works of Mercy''. A charity brotherhood (''Pio Monte della Misericordia'' meanin ...

, for whose church Caravaggio had already painted ''

The Seven Works of Mercy ''The Seven Works of Mercy'' ( it, Sette opere di Misericordia), also known as ''The Seven Acts of Mercy'', is an oil painting by Italian painter Caravaggio, circa 1607. The painting depicts the seven corporal works of mercy in traditional Cat ...

''. It was moved to the museum at Capodimonte in 1972. The

Flagellation of Christ The Flagellation of Christ, sometimes known as Christ at the Column or the Scourging at the Pillar, is a scene from the Passion of Christ very frequently shown in Christian art, in cycles of the Passion or the larger subject of the '' Life of C ...

had long been a popular subject in religious art—and in contemporary religious practice, where the church encouraged self-flagellation as a means by which the faithful might enter into the suffering of Christ. Caravaggio would have had in mind the famous fresco by

Sebastiano del Piombo Sebastiano del Piombo (; c. 1485 – 21 June 1547) was an Italian painter of the High Renaissance and early Mannerism, Mannerist periods famous as the only major artist of the period to combine the colouring of the Venetian School (art), Venetian ...

in the church of San Pietro in Montorio in Rome. Caravaggio has reworked Piombo's composition by drastically reducing the picture space so that the sculptural figures seem presented on a shallow stage. He has, however, retained Piombo's sense of the flagellation as a kind of sadistic ballet, with the figures arranged rhythmically across the canvas. Caravaggio's painting introduces an acutely observed reality into the scene: Christ is in this drooping pose, not because it might seem graceful, but because the torturer on the right is kicking the back of his knee while the figure on the left holds his hair tightly in his fist. This series of highly dramatic and innovative Neapolitan altarpieces — the ''Seven Works of Mercy'', this ''Flagellation'', and a close companion piece, '' Christ at the Column'', all done within a few months of his arrival in the city — instantly made Caravaggio the most talked-about artist in Naples, and the church of

Sant'Anna dei Lombardi Sant'Anna dei Lombardi, ( it, St. Anne of the Lombards), and also known as Santa Maria di Monte Oliveto, is an ancient church and convent located in ''piazza Monteoliveto'' in central Naples, Italy. Across Monteoliveto street from the Fountain in ...

(Saint Anna of the Lombards — Caravaggio was originally from Lombardy) became a centre of the

Caravaggisti The Caravaggisti (or the "Caravagesques") were stylistic followers of the late 16th-century Italian Baroque painter Caravaggio. His influence on the new Baroque style that eventually emerged from Mannerism was profound. Caravaggio never establish ...

, artists painting in the style of Caravaggio. These were not only native Neapolitans like

Carlo Sellitto Carlo Sellitto (1581 – 2 October 1614 in Naples) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period. One of the most gifted followers of Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (1571–1610), Sellitto played an important role in the spread of Caravaggism ...

and

Battistello Caracciolo Giovanni Battista Caracciolo (also called Battistello) (1578–1635) was an Italian artist and important Neapolitan follower of Caravaggio. He was a member of the murderous Cabal of Naples, with Belisario Corenzio and Giambattista Caracciolo, w ...

, but included Flemish artists like

Louis Finson Louis Finson, Lodewijk Finson or Ludovicus Finsonius (between 1574 and 1580 – 1617) was a Flemish painter, draughtsman, copyist and art dealer. He painted portraits, religious compositions, allegorical paintings and genre scenes. Moving to Italy ...

Abraham Vinck Abraham Vinck or Abraham Willemsz. Vinck ( Antwerp, 1574/1575 – Amsterdam, 1619) was a Flemish painter and art dealer who spent most of his life and career outside of Flanders, including in Hamburg, Naples and Amsterdam. He is mainly known as ...

and

Hendrick de Somer Hendrick de Somer (1602–c.1655) was a Flemish painter who spent most of his life and career in Italy. He was mainly active in Naples.Stadsarchief Lokeren original baptism certificate : Parochieregister Lokeren : Hendrick de Somer : baptized ...

who would later help spread Caravaggism to northern Europe.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Flagellation of Christ (Caravaggio) 1607 paintings Paintings by Caravaggio Paintings in the collection of the Museo di Capodimonte

Torture in art

Description

See also

References

External links