Late 20th Century Saint Catherine of Alexandria Portrait Oil Painting After Caravaggio 24"

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Late 20th century oil painting on linen after a circa 1598-99 portrait of "Saint Catherine of Alexandria" by Caravaggio. Depicts … Read more Late 20th century oil painting on linen after a circa 1598-99 portrait of "Saint Catherine of Alexandria" by Caravaggio. Depicts Saint Catherine kneeling on a red cushion by the wheel used to kill her, holding a sword. Ornate gilt composite frame, molded with a dense array of scallop, floral and foliate designs.

This painting was almost certainly commissioned in Rome by Caravaggio’s first patron, Cardinal Francesco Maria del Monte. Captured in a strikingly natural pose, the figure of St Catherine has been identified as Fillide Melandroni, a celebrated courtesan of the time. Richly dressed in robes befitting a princess, and kneeling on a cushion, she gazes out at the viewer surrounded by the attributes of her martyrdom: the breaking-wheel, the sword with which she was beheaded and the martyr’s palm. The dramatic lighting of the scene creates a chiaroscuro effect characteristic of Caravaggio, whose approach to light and volume—evident in this canvas—was to have considerable impact both in Italy and throughout Europe.

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (also Michele Angelo Merigi or Amerighi da Caravaggio; 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), known mononymously as Caravaggio, was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. During the final four years of his life, he moved between Naples, Malta, and Sicily. His paintings have been characterized by art critics as combining a realistic observation of the human state, both physical and emotional, with a dramatic use of lighting, which had a formative influence on Baroque painting.

Dimensions:
19.75" x 2.5" x 24" (Width x Depth x Height) See less