Carravaggesque Painting: How Baroque Art was Influenced by the Works of Carravaggio

The beginnings of Protestantism in the north which gave rise to the Mannerist style in Italy during the early 16^th Century elicited a response from the Catholic church. In 1563 the Catholics solidified their Counter Reformation with the Council of Trent which pinpointed the aims of the church and described, in detail, what artists should do to defend against Protestantism and bring people back to the church. The purpose of images now were to instruct the faithful, teach the laity (individuals without access to the bible) and emphasize the Eucharist. This called for “clarity, simplicity, chaste subject matter and the ability to rouse a very Catholic piety in the face of Protestant revolt”. A strict set of rules such as this might have stifled the creativity of artists but apparently limiting the “pallette” of subject matter gave rise to new feats of creative energy in the form of Michelangelo Merisi (1571-1610) known as Caravaggio.

Caravaggio’s paintings included a number of elements that would influence the Baroque style. The figures Caravaggio painted were extremely naturalistic showing wrinkles and dirty fingernails without idealizing them. When placing these figures in his composition he used strong diagonals so that they appeared ready to spill out through the picture plane and right into the laps of the faithful viewing them. His subject matter was painted at the height of the dramatic action and was designed to involve the viewer emotionally with the propaganda being pictured. He painted monochromatic backgrounds which tended to force the subjects further forward and he had mastered chiaroscuro, the painting of highlights and shadows as illusionistic painting which Leonardo da Vinci was known for, to the point that it became known as Tenebrism, an effect that produced an unearthly sense of dramatic lighting with extreme shadows and highlights and without a visible light source in the painting itself. These methods of portraying the approved imagery of the church were so successful that Caravaggio’s style went on to influence artist throughout Europe.

One artist influenced by his work was Artemisia Gentilescchi. Her painting Susannah and the Elders 1610 includes a number of the same elements that made Caravaggio’s work so striking. The figures she paints are extremely naturalistic with the figure representing Susannah painted as a woman actually appears rather than an idealized concept of what one should look like. The men look appropriately sinister and lascivious. These figures are posed with diagonals running through the composition and Susannah looks poised to fall off of the steps and right out of the painting in a very dramatic attempt to get away from her oppressors. Her palette is limited and though she uses bright colors there is a monochromatic feel to their use and an abundance of browns that pull the painting together. The tenebristic deep shadows of the figures are almost black and create the illusion that the figures are three dimensional and thrust forward. Gentilescchi was clearly influenced by Caravaggio’s style but also was accomplishing her own acts of creativity and perhaps social reform by developing a new sense of how women were portrayed in art and perceived by a person viewing that painting.

Rembrandt van Rijn, in his painting The Anatomy Lesson of Dr.Nicolaes Tulp 1632 also exhibits the influence of Caravaggio though he was painting far to the north in Amsterdam. The most important painter in Amsterdam in the 17^th Century, Rembrandt was painting his first group portrait in this work. While he was influenced by Frans Hals who had activated the group portrait rather than simply representing a number of faces and bodies, Rembrandt also exhibits a number of Caravaggio’s techniques in this work. The figures are all rendered naturalistically and activated by a number of diagonals in the composition including the cadaver which is placed diagonally across the bottom of the painting with his feet figuring in the foreground. Here a book is placed seeming to balance on the very edge of the picture plane. The subjects are caught in a heightened moment of dramatic action as the Doctor demonstrates how the muscles of the arm manipulate the digits of the hand. The dramatic lighting effect is affected using Tenebrism and creates deep shadows and glowing highlights without demonstrating a visible light source.

Though the artist Caravaggio created his style in response to the Counter Reformation of the Catholic Church his painting methods went beyond the propaganda needs of that Religion. His work influenced the way that painting was done throughout Europe and the artists that adapted aspects of his style used the increased dramatic appeal for their own purposes. Gentilescchi’s work was done in Italy and followed the letter of the Counter Reformation while perhaps advancing women’s rights. The subject matter in Rembrandt’s painting though, is secular and highlights the concepts of scientific advancement. Each had their own agenda but owe a great deal to Caravaggio’s influence.