On a unique exhibition at the Pushkin Museum. Alexander Pushkin demonstrated 11 works of genius rebel and reformer of art by Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio

Pushkin Museum. Pushkin, on November 26, 2011 - February 19, 2012

Exhibition of paintings by Caravaggio, the final year of Italian culture and Italian language in Russia, in Moscow Pushkin Museum . Pushkin was extremely busy. Throughout the year, the cycle shows a masterpiece paintings were shown "The Lady with the Unicorn" by Raphael Sanzio, "Pallas and the Centaur" by Sandro Botticelli, portraits, "Febo da Brescia" and "Laura da Pola" by Lorenzo Lotto, and the sculpture "Head of Medusa "Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini from various museums in Italy.

exhibition of works of genius 11 rebel and reformer of art by Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (1571-1610) from the collections of Italy and the Vatican will be the culminating event of the Year of Italy. For the first time in Russia and for the first time outside of Italy in one exhibition space is represented by a number of works of this master, who decisively influenced the development of art in modern times. Caravaggio worked at the turn of the XVI - XVII centuries, when formed a new European culture. The seventeenth century marks the next major step after the Renaissance, the artistic development of the real world, in the growing art of approximation to reality. Start casting coup of the worldview and creative practice of painters not only of Italy but of all other European schools connected with the name of Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio.

creative way Caravaggio covers only two decades at the turn of the incomplete XVI and XVII centuries. He was born September 29, 1571 in Lombardy, in the town of Caravaggio in the family bricklayer. Having first professional experience at home, in the studio of the artist Simone Petertsano Milan - a student of Titian, he went to Rome at the age of twenty-odd years, where at first moonlights as an assistant to various artists, among others, Knight d'Arpino, then the famous painter.

Within a short period in his art quickly and vigorously born and develop in a system of foundations for a new artistic world view, and are produced in parallel and principles of a new visual language. One of the cardinal innovations of Caravaggio was the fact that in contrast to the generalized idealized vision of the world, different implementation of Renaissance painting, and later baroque and classical, the master turned to the human type of surrounding life, turned into a complete picture of individual full-scale motifs, marginalize them and presenting a strong approximation to the audience and with a distinctive "sculptural" cut-off and volume highlighted the bulk form. Such a sharp object from a selection of fine overall holistic picture of the world occurred in the first painting.

Caravaggio A young man with a basket of fruit. 1593 Galleria Borghese, Rome Oil on canvas. 70 x 67 Source: arts-museum.ru

One of the major achievements of this master was a direct appeal to the phenomena of reality as self-valuable objects and their realization within the principle of a new genre of painting - painting genre, a notable example of which is represented in the exhibition work of "young man with a basket of fruit", 1593, (Rome, Galleria Borghese). leitmotif of the work was the theme of joy and enjoy the splendor of the material nature of all things, as if the artist rediscovered: human flesh and fine fruits of the earth in the surrounding real light and air. tangibility and shape accuracy of the transfer of the picturesque fruit in the foreground only emphasize the subtlety of the image created by the wizard. Continuing to work in this direction, artist created such works as "A young man with a lizard" (1593, Longhi Foundation in Florence), "Lute Player" (1594, The State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg), "Fortune Teller" (1594, Louvre, Paris), "Rounders" (1596 Gallery, Kimball, Fort Worth, USA), and others.

But for all the interest in Caravaggio to reality, still the main area of ​​the creative master was the traditional range of images of Christian mythology in paintings on religious subjects. As a rule, the product of this range are custom, so very often customers are not only choosing the subject and format pictures, but also determine its size. As for the figurative interpretation, then the artist was very self-sufficient and its differences with the needs of our customers do not once grew in the conflict.

main themes in the works of Caravaggio were the New Testament with the adjacent scenes from the life of the Virgin Mary and hagiography - the images of saints and scenes from their life stories. In the Gospel section - in because of its special content and the rule of the Catholic religious hierarchy - a legacy of Caravaggio's altar is dominated large-scale compositions of monumental plan. Requirements adopted by the iconography of the New Testament in terms of more stringent and specific for the master bold departure from them is particularly radical. In this series, about a dozen paintings are rendered in the form of multi-figured scenes. In the hagiographical compositions, the artist is more free from the canonical prescriptions to show the characters and drama of the situation. The scale and scope of the range of composition possibilities are wider: from odnofigurnyh images to canvas with many figures and sometimes complicated symbolism.

< p class = "mat1"> works both sections together first the overall emotional tone, namely, a dramatic color images. It consists in choosing the stories already, and their treatment: a scene of passion and martyrdom, ascetic hermits images stand out noticeably. statics of mutual co-host protagonists and other characters Caravaggio contrasts the dynamics of active actions and experiences. Detailed narrative does not carry it. On the contrary, an integral feature of his art - the ability of each scene in a situation of conflict in its content in the composition-structure pattern distinguish plastic hub, the core activities Strongly rejecting the rest. The same problem is the compact organization of plastics, the concentration of dramatic effect, condensed black and white contrast - all provide expressive conciseness of solutions of the artist. With Caravaggio in the range of traditional religious images, surrounded by a halo of piety, invades the world of stark, often brutal reality of most revealed by the audience with a challenging, unquestioned power adoption. Nihilism Caravaggio in relation to traditional forms of embodiment of religious imagery was deeply positive factor not only in the general process of forming an era of art, but also in developing new types of paintings of religious purpose. The roots of this paradox inherent in contradictions of the historical situation of Italy abroad XVI - XVII centuries and artistic processes of the time. In this case we are talking about the artistic situation is determined by the ensuing Counter-Reformation, when the Catholic Church, being able to adapt to the changes that have taken place in the consciousness of society, recognized the validity of the use of religious imagery many artistic achievements of the Renaissance and Baroque emerging. But for a modernized aesthetic doctrine of discovery of Caravaggio seemed too radical.

religious paintings of Caravaggio Characters belong to the same social circle as the actors of his genre scenes, and highlighted the contrasts of light and shadow, the use of sharp angles intensify the dramatic mood of his religious works. A striking example of this is remarkable for its value the painting "The Conversion of Saul" (1600), presented at the exhibition. (It is always in the Roman church of Santa Maria del Popolo). The fact of providing this masterpiece of the exhibition in Moscow is truly unique. The painting conveys the spiritual insight of man, and not by chance that the main means of expression here is light, which stretches out his hands to the ground prostrate Saul, the future apostle Paul.

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Caravaggio The Conversion of Saul. 1600 Church of Santa Maria del Popolo, Rome Oil on canvas. 230 x 175 Source: arts-museum.ru

Caravaggio John the Baptist. 1602 Capitoline Museums in Rome Oil on canvas. 129 x 94 Source: arts-museum.ru

Two paintings by Caravaggio, demonstrated at the exhibition, devoted to the image of John the Baptist. This painting, "St. John the Baptist" from the collection of the Capitoline Museums in Rome. The canvas depicts a happy young man, like an ancient god, unaware of shame, replete with the joy of being that embraces the ram: he does not hide their nakedness, and makes a radiant, infectious smile to the viewer, as if urging him to step into the space of the picture. This piece was written in 1602, a turning point in the life of Caravaggio, shortly after the paintings for the chapel in the church of San Kontarelli Luigi dei Francese. The presence of composition of the image in ram for some time to learn to prevent her hero John the Baptist. In the XVII century, offered a secular interpretation of the story, referring to the classic literature bucolic genre - a young man called the "Phrygian shepherd" and "Corydon." But the inventory of 1616 clear that the picture painted for Giovanni Battista Mattei, represented the Baptist in connection with the theme of Christ's Passion. Baptist embraces the ram - the traditional sacrificial animal, because the main theme of the painting - not a picture of the Baptist, and the image of Christ's Sacrifice and Redemption. John, in the words of Christ Himself , "was a burning and a shining light: and ye were willing for a season to rejoice in his light" (John, 5, 35). This phrase refers evangelical image mullein (verbascum), of which at that time were made wicks, this plant traditionally associated with the Baptist. Designed for the private palace, the canvas from the collection of the Capitoline museums not an illustration of the biblical story or an image that serves the needs of worship. It is a deep generalization of the reflection of the artist on the person of Christ, resurrected in memory by his immediate predecessors - John the Baptist.

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Caravaggio John the Baptist in the wilderness. 1603-1604 National Gallery, the Palazzo Corsini, Rome Oil on canvas. 94 x 131 Source: arts-museum.ru

Another work dedicated to the Baptist, Caravaggio was created in 1603 -1604 years. This is "John the Baptist in the Desert" from the National Gallery, located in the Palazzo Corsini in Rome. For the first time a picture is mentioned under the name "St. John the Baptist in the style of Caravaggio "in 1784 in an inventory of the collections of Prince Bartholomew Corsini, stored in the Archives of Family Corsini. Vigorous restrained brushwork, the use of side lighting, exposing a dark figure on the brownish background, bring together a product with a number of works written in the last year of the artist in Rome, about 1606. Naked body of the saint says softly, and moving the left hand resting on his knee, and head sharply turned to the right, notably the influence of plastics "Moses" by Michelangelo. Poetic power is concentrated in the leaf shadows moving around a figure which emerges from the soft background. Frowning face, "the boy from the edge", which is in the image of Caravaggio Baptist, steeped in shadow, his eyes hidden by falling unruly hair. We do not see but only feel his eyes, as if he is hiding, hiding a painful, wistful sadness - sadness Baptist thinker in anticipation of the Incarnate Word.

its peak of artistic maturity up to Caravaggio in 1606 when he wrote several monumental paintings for the most famous Roman churches, including St. Peter's Basilica for. "Entombment" (1606, Vatican Museums, Pinacoteca) - one of the most celebrated works of this time, it affects the veracity of the transfer of feelings and powerful dramatic fervor. As is clear from the documents to understand the picture is extremely important to remember the active role of the Order oratoriantsev, which belonged to the cathedral, they were strict rules regarding the decoration of the chapels and the iconography of the scenes. Light pulls out obscure characters from the darkness, reveals the traits and their feelings: aged mother of Christ, addressed sinner Mary Magdalene, Mary Cleopas, "beloved disciple" John and Nicodemus. The group of figures forms a sort of sculptural, a spectator is a party scene due to angle of view (bottom of stone) and the view of Nicodemus, in whose image the researchers saw a portrait of the customer, Pietro Vittriche. Light distribution in the film is strictly thought out, allowing Caravaggio can direct the viewer's eye. The picture combines the elements and characters from two stories - "The Entombment" (which, according to the Gospels, was attended by Joseph of Arimathea, Mary Magdalene and Mary the wife of Clopas), and "Lament" (which is usually represented by the Virgin and St. John the Evangelist). This connection is dictated by the iconographic program of the church, was responsible of the plan, Filippo Neri, founder of the oratoriantsev. Caravaggio adds an element that carries the songs greater emotional load - a huge stone slab, on which stand the characters. This is the stone that covers the entrance to the burial cave, while the stone of anointing, which was laid the body of the Saviour for umascheniya incense and swaddling, which fell the tears of the Mother and Son, a drop of blood. Plate directly refers to Christ as the cornerstone, comprising the Old and New Testaments, a stone, on which the Church, understood as a "body of Christ," and symbolically presented here is the body of the Saviour.

Caravaggio Prayer of St. Francis. Around 1606 National Gallery, the Palazzo Barberini, Rome, Oil on canvas. 125 x 93 Source: arts-museum. ru

last years of Caravaggio marked series of dramatic events, the cause of which was the fatal wound, accidentally inflicted by the artist, Mr. Thomasson Ranuchcho during ball games. Caravaggio was threatened with severe punishment, including the death penalty, and on the advice of friends, he left Rome. During this period, who was forced into hiding, he constantly moved from place to place and worked in Naples, then in Sicily and Malta. This later period is represented by several paintings in the exhibition, the most prominent of which is written must be recognized in Sicily "Adoration of the Shepherds" (1609), filled with tenderness and feeling great at the same time destitution. In the works created in these years, steadily increasing anticipation of impending tragedy, which was reflected in the composition of "The Martyrdom of St. Ursula" (1610) from the collection of Italian Bank Intesa, the last works of great masters. Cloth features inherent in the interpretation of the original artist of religious subjects