Italian School circa 1700
Adoration of the Shepherds
Oil on vellum, oval
h: 20,50 w: 26 cm
Private collection
The Adoration of the Shepherds, in the Nativity
of Jesus in art, is a scene in which shepherds are near witnesses to the birth
of Jesus in Bethlehem, arriving soon after the actual birth. It is often
combined in art with the Adoration of the Magi, in which case it is typically
just referred to by the latter title. The Annunciation to the Shepherds, when
they are summoned by an angel to the scene, is a distinct subject.
The Adoration of the Shepherds is based on the
account in the Luke 2, not reported by any other Canonical Gospel, which states
that an angel appeared to a group of shepherds, saying that Christ had been
born in Bethlehem, followed by a crowd of angels saying Glory to God in the
highest, peace on earth to men of good will. This Annunciation to the shepherds
forms a distinct subject in Christian art and is sometimes included in a
Nativity scene as a peripheral feature (even though it occurs prior to the adoration
itself), as in the 1485 scene by Domenico Ghirlandaio, where it can be seen in
the upper left corner. Ghirlandaio also shows a procession of Magi about to
arrive with their gifts. More on The Adoration of the Shepherds
Painting in 17th-century Italy was an
international endeavor. Large numbers of artists traveled to Rome, especially,
to work and study. They sought not only the many commissions being extended by
the Church but also the chance to learn from past masters. Most of the century
was dominated by the baroque style, whose expressive power was well suited to
the needs of the Counter-Reformation Church for affecting images.
The drama
and movement that characterized the baroque—in sculpture and architecture as
well as painting—can be first seen, perhaps, in the work of Caravaggio, who
died in 1610. His strong contrasts of light and dark and unblinking realism
were taken up by many artists, including the Italian Orazio Gentileschi, the
Spaniard Jusepe de Ribera, and the Frenchmen Valentin de Boulogne and Simon
Vouet, all of whom worked in Italy. Other artists carried Caravaggio’s
so-called tenebrist style to northern Europe.
The more classical approach of the Carracci and their
students Guercino and Domenichino was also an important force in 17th-century
painting. It provided a foundation for the rational clarity that structured the
work of French artists Nicolas Poussin and Claude Lorrain, both of whom worked
in Rome for most of their lives. More
on the ITALIAN SCHOOL, (17th century)
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