Giovanni Francesco Barbieri, called Il Guercino
The Penitent Magdalene
Oil on canvas
Private collection
Estimate for 600,000 - 800,000 GBP in July 2009
The Magdalene is portrayed here repenting her sins. She is shown in a rocky cove in the desert of Sainte Baume in Provence where legend has it that she spent the last 30 years of her life. She has with her three of her attributes, the whip, the book and the crucifix, but is devoid of her usual vase of ointment. The background is simple and does not draw our attention away from her. A shaft of light streams into the cave to illuminate the crucifix and we see that the saint has pulled down her tunic and with her right arm reaches over to whip the left side of her back. However, the right arm reaches across gently, without the force one might expect, and fits in naturally into the balanced composition. The calm of the scene is mirrored in the soft lighting and muted palette in which the highlights in her hair match the golden tone of her drapery, and the subtle plays of light and dark. Rather than through movement, the intensity of the scene is conveyed through the concentration on her face, especially noticable in the beautiful preparatory drawing. More on this painting
The Penitent Magdalene
Oil on canvas.
118.5x96.5 cm.
Private collection
Estimate for 400,000 - 600,000 USD in January 2014
This Penitent Magdalene is one of a series of five life-size paintings of saints commissioned by Cardinal Fabrizio Savelli in 1649. Savelli was appointed Papal Legate in Bologna on 1 September 1648, holding that position until 1651.
The Magdalene is portrayed here repenting her sins, the penitent harlot. She is shown in a rocky cove in the desert of Sainte Baume in Provence where legend has it that she spent the last 30 years of her life. She has with her three of her attributes, the whip, the book and the crucifix, but is devoid of her usual vase of ointment. The saint has pulled down her tunic and with her right arm reaches over to whip the left side of her back. However, the right arm reaches across gently, without the force one might expect, and fits in naturally into the balanced composition. More on this painting
Guercino (Giovanni Francesco Barbieri)
Penitent Magdalene contemplating a Crucifix, c. 1637
Oil on canvas
Private collection
Guercino (Giovanni Francesco Barbieri)
Penitent Magdalene contemplating a Crucifix, ca. 1624–25
Pen and brown ink on cream laid paper
18.9 x 21 cm (7 7/16 x 8 1/4 in.)
Princeton University Art Museum
During the Counter Reformation Mary Magdalene's penitential role was emphasized, as in this drawing, which depicts the saint adoring a small crucifix. Executed with deft strokes of pen and ink, this exploratory sketch demonstrates the ways in which the leading Italian Baroque painter Guercino exploited economical means for maximum dramatic effect, utilizing a graphic code of devices—zigzagging lines, clustered dots, and parallel hatching—to conjure the essence of female beauty and rapturous devotion. More on this work
Giovanni Francesco Barbieri, called Guercino
The Penitent Magdalene
Oil on canvas
44 3/4 x 36 3/8 inches
Private collection
Estimate for 500,000 - 700,000 USD in January 2016
Guercino depicts the Magdalene’s hair with remarkably fine strokes, highlighting the thick, waving tresses at her head and shoulders, down to the individual hairs that uncoil across her abdomen. The crucifix at left is bound to the broken branch of a tree stump. The figure of Christ is shown from below and behind, and the shadows of the musculature in his torso and legs are expressed with impressive naturalism. More on this painting
Guercino, actually Giovanni Francesco Barbieri; 1591-1666. Successor.
The Penitent Mary Magdalene
Oil on canvas
65 × 55.4cm.
Private collection
The artist depicts the Magdalene’s hair with remarkably fine strokes, highlighting the thick, waving tresses at her head and shoulders, down to the individual hairs that uncoil across her abdomen. The crucifix at left is bound to the broken branch of a tree stump, a device repeated in his Saint Francis in the Desert in the church of San Cetteo, Pescara (L. Salerno, I Dipinti del Guercino, Rome, 1988, p. 331, no. 260, reproduced). The figure of Christ is shown from below and behind, and the shadows of the musculature in his torso and legs are expressed with impressive naturalism. More on this painting
Saint Mary Magdalene
Oil on canvas
45 1/4 x 37 1/8 in. (114.9 x 94.3 cm)
Private collection
This painting is an excellent example of Guercino’s shift toward a less intuitive style in the aftermath of his sojourn in Rome. Transcending her contemplation of death and repentance of sins, the Magdalene looks heavenward in a rapture that is echoed by the shaft of light from the upper left. More on this painting
Giovanni Francesco Barbieri Guercino (1591-1666)
Title The Penitent Magdalene
Oil on Canvas
25 x 29 inches
Private collection
The painting is a religious scene of a penitent Mary Magdalene, her glistening eyes cast to the heavens and her hands folded in prayer. The artist has captured a wonderful lushness to her hair as it cascades down her gown. More on this painting
Mary of Magdala was a leading figure among those attracted to Jesus. When the men in that company abandoned him at the hour of mortal danger, Mary of Magdala was one of the women who stayed with him, even to the Crucifixion. She was present at the tomb, the first person to whom Jesus appeared after his resurrection and the first to preach the “Good News” of that miracle. These are among the few specific assertions made about Mary Magdalene in the Gospels. From other texts of the early Christian era, it seems that her status as an “apostle,” in the years after Jesus’ death, rivaled even that of Peter. This prominence derived from the intimacy of her relationship with Jesus, which, according to some accounts, had a physical aspect that included kissing. Beginning with the threads of these few statements in the earliest Christian records, dating to the first through third centuries, an elaborate tapestry was woven, leading to a portrait of St. Mary Magdalene in which the most consequential note—that she was a repentant prostitute—is almost certainly untrue. On that false note hangs the dual use to which her legend has been put ever since: discrediting sexuality in general and disempowering women in particular. More on Mary of Magdala. More on The Magdalene
Giovanni Francesco Barbieri (February 8, 1591 – December 22, 1666), better known as (il) Guercino, was an Italian Baroque painter and draftsman from Cento in the Emilia region, who was active in Rome and Bologna. The vigorous naturalism of his early manner contrasts with the classical equilibrium of his later works. His many drawings are noted for their luminosity and lively style.
Being cross-eyed, at an early age he acquired the nickname by which he is universally known, Guercino, a painter of the Bolognese School. An early commission was for the decoration with frescos (1615–1616[9]) of Casa Pannini in Cento, where the naturalism of his landscapes already reveals considerable artistic independence, as do his landscapes on canvas Moonlit Landscape and Country Concert from the same era.] In Bologna, he was winning the praise of Ludovico Carracci. He always acknowledged that his early style had been influenced by study of a Madonna painted by Ludovico Carracci for the Capuchin church in Cento, affectionately known as "La Carraccina".
His painting Et in Arcadia ego from around 1618–1622 contains the first known usage anywhere of the Latin motto, later taken up by Poussin and others, signifying that death lurks even in the most idyllic setting. The dramatic composition of this canvas (related to his Flaying of Marsyas by Apollo (1617–1618) created for The Grand Duke of Tuscany, which shares the same pair of shepherds is typical of Guercino's early works, which are often tumultuous in conception. He painted two large canvases, Samson Seized by Philistines (1619) and Elijah Fed by Ravens (1620), for Cardinal Serra, a Papal Legate to Ferrara. Painted at a time when it is unlikely that Guercino could have seen Caravaggio's work in Rome, these works nevertheless display a starkly naturalistic Caravaggesque style. More on Guercino
Please visit my other blogs: Art Collector, Mythology, Marine Art, Portrait of a Lady, The Orientalist, Art of the Nude and The Canals of Venice, Middle East Artists, 365 Saints, 365 Days, and Biblical Icons, also visit my Boards on Pinterest and my art stores at deviantart and Aaroko
Images are copyright of their respective
owners, assignees or others. Some Images may be subject to copyright
I don't own any of these images - credit is
always given when due unless it is unknown to me. if I post your images without
your permission, please tell me.
Ads are shown only to compensate the hosting
expenses.
If you enjoyed this post, please share with
friends and family.
Thank you for visiting my blog and also for
liking its posts and pages.
Please note that the content of this post
primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources
online.
%20Mary%20Magdalene.jpg)
%20The%20penitent%20Mary%20Magdalene%20in%20the%20cave,%20c.%201890.jpg)
