ARTH Notes - Sept 8

Paper 2: How does gesture operate in the image you selected?

Caravaggio
The more important your patron is, the more one is allowed to behave however one wants
Has great connections: learned that pope had pardoned him for murder before dying
First skill: still life, employed at fresco painter's

Cardinal Del Monte

Lived in Medici palace
Found Caravaggio after purchasing open market stuff
Caravaggio's images become more specific

The Concert
Edited on the piece itself - no sketches

Bacchus Painting
Hung salon style - one on top of the other, wall filled with images
Confrontational image - solicitation of viewer
"Moment in time" feeling
Unsavory figure - dirty sheet, rotting food
Reminds us of Michelangelo's Bacchus - created to mimic ancient found statue
Homo eroticism - Caravaggio associated with theatric gender confusion, fluid sexual
relationships
Boy Bitten by Lizard - composition about touch
amore - love

amarro - bitter

ramarro - lizard

Love is like bitter bite of lizard - visual equivalent to wordplay

Fortune Teller Painting
Gypsy stealing ring from guy

Light sources - light is inexplicable, shows natural light in addition to that illuminating figures
St. Francis - Chiaroscuro, transitions from highlighted areas to darker areas
Chiaro: light

Scuro: dark

Not great at anatomy

French National Church - Saint Louis Church - Contarelli chapel

Contarelli: Cointrel was owner
Lateral paintings: when cardinal died, heirs commissioned altarpieces
Caravaggio assigned contract for lateral paintings after original artist moved
Represent calling of St Matthew on left and *** on right
Not frescos - anything this large traditionally painted in fresco, but Caravaggio wanted
chiaroscuro affect, didn't want to paint in public, didn't want to draw
Lateral paintings must be viewed at sharp angle
Cointrel was in charge of discretionary funds of papal purse, accused of stealing some
Painting is of Matthew as money changer
Christ points to Matthew, transferring power
Reads right to left, coincides to light source in chapel