art

Guercino

Aurora – Ceiling Fresco by Guercino at Villa Aurora in Rome

February 8, 1591 was the birthday of Giovanni Francesco Barbieri better know as Guercino. He was born into a family of peasant farmers in Cento a small town in the Po Valley. His nickname, Guercino, refers to the fact that he was cross-eyed being a diminutive of the Italian word for ‘squinter’.

His early works were naturalistic somewhat in the style of Carravagio. He spent three years in Rome at the invitation of Pope Gregory XV and stayed there until Gregory’s death in 1623 when Guercino returned to Bologna. He set up his studio there, took on pupils and was incredibly prolific. His later works are more classical and embody much more luminosity and clarity than his early works thanks partly to his use of chiaroscuro.

We can see this in his two paintings of ‘Susanna and the Elders’, the biblical tale set in Babylon when two old men conspire to seduce and blackmail a young woman to have sex with them.

Here is his first painting of the subject, painted in 1617. It is very dynamic.

Susanna and the Elders, Guercino 1617

Contrast it with this later version painted in 1650 by the same artist. It shows much more contrast between light and dark and appears more luminous.

Guercino, Susanna and the Elders, 1650

It’s also interesting to contrast both of these paintings with one on the same subject by Artemisia Gentileschi – one of the very few female artists of the time. Her painting of the subject has, to me, a particular female point of view; the postures of the men are threatening and lascivious and the woman seems clearly oppressed. It’s an interesting contrast in perspectives. This was her very first signed painting.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/04/Susanna_and_the_Elders_%281610%29%2C_Artemisia_Gentileschi.jpg
Artemisia Gentileschi, Susanna and the Elders 1610

Guercino died in 1666 leaving a large number of works and many pupils who became well-know painters in their own right.

Posted by Tom in Art

Mary Cassatt

I grew up in Washington DC and the near suburbs. One of the advantages of being in Washington was the wealth of cultural and historical resources available to the public. When I was quite young my mother made a point of taking me to the Smithsonian museums and the National Art Gallery (We called it the Mellon Art Gallery at the time because Andrew Mellon was one of the biggest donors.)

This painting, “The Boating Party” by Mary Cassatt was one of my favorites as a child and is still a favorite. I know next to nothing about art but I like the colors and the composition. Although it’s not a ‘realist’ painting it always seemed to me to depict something quite real.

The NGA has quite a nice collection of works by Mary Cassatt. This is another that I always liked – “Children Playing on the Beach”. I always identified with the photo because our family took annual vacations to the beach at Ocean City.

I think Mary Cassatt was a remarkable artist and I encourage you all to go and see her paintings at the National Gallery the next time you are in Washington. It’s a wonderful and peaceful place to visit. She and Edgar Degas worked closely together and you can see some of his work at the same time! I will close with her self-portrait which hangs in the National Portrait Gallery in Washington.

Posted by Tom in Art