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Thursday, February 27, 2014
The one and only...
So you knew it had to be a Caravaggio, right? This piece is known as the Crucifixion of St. Peter. It was completed in 1601. Let's see what you can did up on this piece. Remember to add your personal thoughts about this especially since Caravaggio planned his pieces to engage you emotionally.
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I think the composition of this painting is much better than the other Caravaggio works we've seen. The picture is still crowded but there's not a ton going on. I don't see a clear focal point but maybe it is Peter's face because of the space cleared around it. Peter's left arm and the ropes hanging near his head act as leading lines.
ReplyDeleteSt Peter, one of the 12 disciples of Jesus, was crucified upside down according to legend. He did not want to be crucified the same way of jesus because he did not feel worthy. Here he has already been nailed and now the cross is being put into place
What do you think makes this composition better than his others?
DeleteAn interesting bit of information I found on this piece was that St. Peter may have been depicted this way in order to visually represent additional biblical passages such as Matt 16:18 and John 3:20-3:21. These verses referred to St. Peter as being "the rock" upon which Christ's church was founded upon (which may be represented by how three men struggle to lift him) and claimed that those who practice honesty/righteousness should "come to the light" while those who do evil "do not come to the light" (which would explain why only St. Peter's face is illuminated while the other men's faces are distinctly turned away from the light), respectively.
ReplyDeleteFor me, this piece evokes contradicting feelings of both discomfort and acceptance. This may be due to how Peter's body seems to be writhing in pain as the men are lifting him on his cross (which is new to me because it shows a very human/vulnerable side of the saint which hadn't really been expressed in previous centuries), but Peter's static facial expression makes him appear to be slightly content, like he feels obligated to go through all this regardless of his physical pain.
Well stated.
DeleteFor me, the painting is very interesting on the facials of Peter. The one guy on the ground I like the detail that they show. It looks to me like his foot is dirty from the dirt on the ground. To me the details on the picture is very detailed although there isn't much going on. The clothing looks great. It looks like they are wearing the clothing. When I look at it carefully I feel the emotion of whats going on.
ReplyDeleteWhat facts did you find out?
DeleteThis piece makes me feel extremely claustrophobic. From Peter's perspective he doesn't look accepting of his fate. As if freedom is right there but he can't reach it no matter how easy it seems to attain. I don't want to look away but it makes me feel uncomfortable the more I do. But I really like it all the same, Caravaggio's definitely growing on me the more of his work I see.
ReplyDeleteThis painting is completely makes me feel a real sense of discomfort. The way the composition is laid out and the struggle you feel by the tilting of the cross gives this heavy feeling in my chest. I am having a hard time finding any other emotion besides discomfort. The look on St. Peters face is very much scared, and rather sad looking but I would imagine i'd feel the same if I had to go through the same thing. The dramatic lighting of this piece also gives it more attention and really calls your focus on the main subject of St. Peter while also giving this eery vibe from the others in the painting.
ReplyDeleteI think Caravaggio did a great job with this piece. He invites you in to the piece but only to watch what is happening to Peter. Caravaggio captures such great detail in his work even so in this painting. i noticed he gave more detail to the things happening to peter rather than to the gentlemen who are lifting the cross on which peter is being crucified on. He doesn't even allow the faces of these men to be seen, and I think that's what makes this piece so interesting to look at, because the story is about Peter and not the men who are lifting. There is so much emotion in this piece I can feel the pain and anger and frustration, and tension Peter is going through. And even when I look deeper into the painting, looking at the detail Caravaggio puts into the painting where Peter"s feet and hands are being nailed is so powerful. I spent several minutes looking at the painting before I looked away to dig and find anything interesting about the painting. Something I found was Caravaggio was commissioned to paint this piece for a private owner, and suddenly this one who had the piece commissioned died.After his death the painting was said to have been placed in a Roman church.
ReplyDeleteGood find!
DeleteI like this piece a lot I love how St peter is at peace with himself and is accepting of what is about to happen to him. I also noticed that it was vary cramped and dark inside this painting
ReplyDeleteLooking at this, I can almost see Peter twisting and struggling against this piece. The way his body is turned and the expression on his face backs this up. This piece was painted for the Cerasi Chapel of Santa Maria del Popolo in Rome, and sits alongside another of Caravaggio's works: The Conversion of Saint Paul on the Road to Damascus, with Annibale Carracci's Assumption of the Virgin Mary between the two.
ReplyDeleteI like the attention to detail that is shown in the painting.... everything from the wrinkles in the bottom of the feet, to the veins in the arms, to the muscles tensing up. Even Peter's muscles are tensing as he struggles to stay upright as they lift his feet above his head. I also like how the painter draws your attention to the main subject by not allowing us to see the other charector's faces... All attention goes to Peter's face.
ReplyDeleteIn addition! I read the reason St. Peter is depicted upside down because he didn't see himself worthy of being crucified the same way as Jesus. Also Caravaggio had only been doing large alter pieces for the church in Rome for two years before being commissioned to do this painting.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/art/great-works/great-works-crucifixion-of-st-peter-1601-230cm-x-175cm-caravaggio-6259925.html
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Wikipedia
i think that this is very interesting because it shows the people in more detail and makes you want to keep looking at the piece.
ReplyDeleteI am very impressed by the form of the figures used in this painting, especially for this time period. Caravaggio did a great job depicting the bodies to look very real. I almost get a 3D sense form it, as if Peters feet, and the man under the cross are sticking up off of the canvas. One thing I found while researching this painting that I had not considered before was the attention Caravaggio paid to how gravity would affect this situation. The man hoisting the cross with the rope appears to really be struggling, being that in real life that would be very heavy somewhat making one question weather or not that rope is even strong enough to hold that weight.
ReplyDeleteGravity, indeed!
DeleteThis painting shows me that crucifixion is very hard work, especially going through the process to crucify someone and let alone hoisting and carrying the person along with the crucifix. Caravaggio did a great job of painting and making the characters look realistic with the ridges and wrinkles on the body. You can see the muscle in bottom character's calf as he's lifting up the cross. On my research, I found that it was depicted that St. Peter asked for an inverted cross so that he doesn't imitate his God, Jesus Christ, hence why Caravaggio drew him on a inverted cross.
ReplyDelete