What is the meaning of Narcissus by Caravaggio?

What is the meaning of Narcissus by Caravaggio?

Caravaggio’s Narcissus is an exemplary showcase of his tenebrism, the strong contrast between very dark and very bright spaces in a painting. Caravaggio uses this to entirely obscure the background. In this painting, there is nothing but Narcissus and his reflection, highlighting the obsessive focus of the youth.

How much is an original Caravaggio worth?

Caravaggio’s work has been offered at auction multiple times, with realized prices ranging from 5,549 USD to 123,873 USD, depending on the size and medium of the artwork. Since 2000 the record price for this artist at auction is 123,873 USD for Saint Jerome, sold at Dorotheum, Vienna in 2013.

What is Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio famous for?

Caravaggio (byname of Michelangelo Merisi) was a leading Italian painter of the late 16th and early 17th centuries who became famous for the intense and unsettling realism of his large-scale religious works as well as for his violent exploits—he committed murder—and volatile character.

Who made baroque entitled Narcissus?

The highlight of the “Baroque Pathways” show is Caravaggio’s Narcissus (pictured top), which was painted between 1597 and 1599.

What is the story behind Narcissus?

Narcissus (1), in mythology, a beautiful youth, son of Cephissus (the Boeotian river) and Liriope, a nymph. He loved no one till he saw his own reflection in water and fell in love with that; finally he pined away, died, and was turned into the flower of like name.

Why might the artist center the painting so the reflection effectively slices the image in half?

The center of the picture is important because the eye will naturally seek it out. In the painting below, by William Bouguereau, observe how the two intersecting diagonal lines create an important vertical division in the composition ​

How many paintings by Caravaggio exist?

Only some 90 paintings by Caravaggio, who died in 1610 in his late 30s after a turbulent life, and was a master of using the chiaroscuro technique of lighting to make his subjects seem to come alive, previously were known to exist.

What was Caravaggio’s art style?

BaroqueRenaissan…Baroque painting
Caravaggio/Periods

Did Narcissus drown?

In Greek Mythology Narcissus, the mortal son of Gods, fell in love with his beauty and drowned while staring into his own reflection in a pool of water. Narcissus was the spawn of Gods but he was not, in fact, a God.

Was Narcissus a real person?

In Greek mythology, Narcissus (/nɑːrˈsɪsəs/; Ancient Greek: Νάρκισσος Nárkissos) was a hunter from Thespiae in Boeotia (alternatively Mimas or modern day Karaburun, Izmir) who was known for his beauty….Narcissus (mythology)

Narcissus
Abode Thespiae
Symbol daffodil
Parents Cephissus and Liriope

Why did the gods turn Narcissus into a flower?

Narcissus is a legendarily handsome young man in Greek mythology and the basis of a fertility myth. He experiences a particularly extreme form of self-love which leads to his death and transformation into a narcissus flower, fit to attract the goddess Persephone on her way to Hades.

Where are Caravaggio’s paintings today?

Where to See Caravaggio’s Artworks in Rome, Italy

  • 01 of 05. Borghese Gallery. TripSavvy / Christopher Larson.
  • 02 of 05. Church of San Luigi dei Francesi.
  • 03 of 05. Capitoline Museums.
  • 04 of 05. Church of Santa Maria del Popolo.
  • 05 of 05. Vatican Museums.

What techniques does Caravaggio use?

Caravaggio – Stratigraphy quick and loose brushstrokes of oil color that define the composition in every detail. The painting is built with color paste and not by layers (“impasto a corpo” technique). egg tempera highlights, finishing layers and light brown or black glazes.

  • October 28, 2022