"Greetings, Rabbi!" Art Analysis: Baroque Art

 

“A Kiss of Death” An Act of Betrayal: Backstory

        Betrayal, a crime so heinous that it condemns one’s soul to eternal suffering; an act that has burdened man, since the moment Adam and Eve committed it against God – the “original sin.” Capturing the impact of this sin in a single moment, a moment that would change the ancient world forever, was the goal of Michelangelo Caravaggio when he painted his famous work, The Taking of Christ. Commissioned in Rome, during 1602, by one of the period’s most prolific art collectors, Marquis Ciriaco Mattei; Caravaggio worked diligently to portray the drama surrounding Jesus’s arrest. (National Gallery of Art). As tradition with many of his other famous works, evidence shows that Caravaggio altered the positioning of his models several times throughout the painting process. This illustrates his pentimenti, or changes of mind, showing his commitment to ensuring the emotion felt by each figure was intensely expressive. (National Gallery of Art).

        Besides Caravaggio’s unique character positioning, he utilized another technique, one of his own design, that is synonymous with the baroque arts period – this being tenebroso, or tenebrism, which means to darken and obscure. This art style drew heavy inspiration from chiaroscuro, another Italian art style that grouped opposing contrasts to help highlight features within the artwork but elevated the violent clash between light and dark; this allowed Caravaggio to use the work’s light source to place emphasis on the art’s main element – either a character or object. (Wikipedia). A final distinctive characteristic of Caravaggio’s work is the inclusion of a self-portrait; however, this is not an act of vanity. To Caravaggio, his own insertion is a representation of him absorbing the moment – taking in the minute detail and sensing the emotion in the atmosphere.

        Much of Caravaggio’s idealism is within this painting, which is understandable considering it is his own work – and an extremely famous at that; however, he also did uphold an expectation set by the Catholic Church nearly 70 years prior. As a response to the rising influence of the Protestants, the Catholic Church convened in 1545 to push back against these “attacks” on their practices and thus created the Council of Trent. Within their many sessions they discussed the topics of art and depiction of holy figures, and by 1562, the council agreed on a standard for religious works: “[…] ‘all lasciviousness be avoided.’ […] that art should move viewers, […] encourage emotional reactions to aid Christian devotees in their atonement for their role in Christ’s sacrifice.” (Kilroy-Ewbank). One cannot deny that Caravaggio’s portrayal of Judas’s betrayal of Jesus, and Christ’s subsequent arrest, does not conjure a sense of sadness. We know the fate of Christ, his torture and brutal execution, yet we cannot intervene – we can only watch, helplessly. For Caravaggio, his self-insert is his atonement, he stands there observing the dreadful moment when Judas kisses Jesus, his face showing him stunned as he tries to understand why someone would betray the Lord. Beyond this, the council called for art to inspire viewers to: “be excited to adore and love God,” (Kilroy-Ewbank), and Caravaggio provides this inspiration through his depiction of Jesus Christ. Jesus does not weep, he does plead nor fight, he simply acknowledges his fate and is prepared to accept his torment. There is no expression of anger towards Judas, rather his calmness shows that he has already forgiven the sinner and does not seek revenge upon him. Christ’s reaction stem from the qualities that Christians adore of him: his patience, his virtue, and his willingness to love and forgive all man.

It Happened Under the Pale Moonlight: Analysis

        Tone – Undoubtedly the most striking feature found within the artwork, Caravaggio uses tenebroso (tenebrism) to shroud both the scenery, in its entirety, and a third of each character. The purpose of him using this technique is to clearly establish the main focus of the painting: that being each individual and their distinct expression. He does not care about developing a background, as it would only serve as a distraction for the viewer. He strategically chooses a light source that will aid in guiding the viewer, without taking focus away from Christ and the others; this source is the moon, shining brilliantly from the upper-left corner. As its light pours over each character, it violently collides with stark blackness that cloaks the city – helping to emphasis the drama unfolding.

        Furthermore, some may not see on an initial viewing that Caravaggio himself holds a small, dimly light lantern. I believe this was to help illustrate his insignificance during this moment: he is nothing more than an onlooker, someone whose lantern cannot even shed light onto the Lord. Importantly, it also assures the moon is the art’s primary light source; and with Caravaggio’s symbolism of the lantern, perhaps shows that the moon is truly God casting light upon his son’s arrest.

        Color – At first, the harsh contrast between light and dark captivates the audience, however subsequent viewing allows us to see the symbolic coloring used by Caravaggio. Christ wears a red blouse and has a blue shroud draped across his arms; though red is commonly associated with anger and violence, which would be the case for the red blouse the soldiers don under their armor and the red shroud they rip from John (who is in panic as he flees), I believe that Christ’s blouse represents his heart. He expresses no anger towards his traitor, rather remaining calm and forgiving towards Judas. His blue shroud is consistent with many other works by representing his connection to his mother, the Virgin Mary, who symbolizes purity in Christian art. The website, Artsy.net, also has a fantastic analysis regarding the specific color usage for Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary; they discuss how red may signify Jesus’s sacrifice on the cross, which I believe may be Caravaggio’s intent considering this artwork depicts his arrest that will ultimately lead to his crucifixion.

        As for Judas and John, it is hard for me to determine if their blouses truly represent an emotion or just help contrast these men against Christ and fixate the audience on him only. I believe for John, there is some symbolism for his olive green blouse, with it implying weakness (as green can express inexperience) in his faith. As the soldiers arrest Christ, John flees from them, not prepared to stand by the Son of God, his mentor and face possible execution – though Jesus has preached to him the glory of heaven that awaits him.

        Texture – The arresting officer’s steel pauldron features an almost unnatural sheen, an intense polish that produces a mirror-like finish. This is another technique used by Caravaggio, notably found in his work, Martha and Mary Magdalene, which has a gleaming venetian mirror that reflects Mary’s pointed finger back at the viewer. Caravaggio is known to use mirrors to invite the viewer into reflecting on their own conscience – to ponder over their own sin. I agree with this interpretation, as the officer’s placement next to Christ, which partially obstructs the view of Judas, allows us to step in place of Judas and think about the sin we have committed against Christ. We can feel the remorse for being fallible yet feel the warmth of love and forgiveness from Jesus, who accepted the sacrifice for our salvation so long ago.

References

Fiore, Julia. “Why Jesus and Mary Always Wear Red and Blue in Art History.” Artsy, 19 Dec. 2018, https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-jesus-mary-wear-red-blue-art-history.

 

Kilroy-Ewbank, Dr. Lauren. “The Council of Trent and the Call to Reform Art.” Smarthistory, 20 May 2021, https://smarthistory.org/the-council-of-trent-and-the-call-to-reform-art/.

 

 Petruzzello, Melissa. “Council of Trent.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 19 Aug. 2019, https://www.britannica.com/event/Council-of-Trent/.

 

“The Taking of Christ (Caravaggio).” Edited by Lothar Moser, Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 17 May 2022, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Taking_of_Christ_(Caravaggio)#:~:text=The%20Taking%20of%20Christ%20%28Italian%3A%20Presa%20di%20Cristo,in%20the%20National%20Gallery%20of%20Ireland%2C%20Dublin.%20Contents.

 

“Tenebrism.” Edited by Maximajorian Viridio, Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 8 Dec. 2021, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tenebrism.

 

Unknown, Unknown. “'The Taking of Christ' by Michelangelo Merisi Da Caravaggio.” National Gallery of Ireland, 2022, https://www.nationalgallery.ie/art-and-artists/highlights-collection/taking-christ-michelangelo-merisi-da-caravaggio.