The stories behind some of the Italian Baroque master's most famous works
Michelangelo da Merisi, better known as Caravaggio, was one of the most influential, and notorious, artists of the Baroque period. A fugitive escaping a death sentence for murder for much of his life, Caravaggio's lasting legacy is that of a pioneer who developed a style that combined dramatic lighting with psychological insight. Here are five of his most famous paintings.
The adolescent Bacchus (1595 - 1597) by Caravaggio MerisiUffizi Gallery
1. 'The Adolescent Bacchus'
Now one of Caravaggio’s most instantly recognizable early works, this painting of a young Bacchus—The Roman god of wine and harvest—was actually forgotten about for two centuries before it was found, unframed, in the storage facilities at the Uffizi in 1916.
The young Bacchus has a glazed expression—presumably because he’s already drunk—and the yellowish light in which he’s bathed is suggestive of jaundice, a condition brought on by excessive alcohol consumption.
If you zoom in closely on the carafe of wine to the left of the painting, you might see that Caravaggio has hidden the faintest of self-portraits in the deep red liquid. You might really have to press your face to the screen to see this one!
After years spent hidden in the basem*nt, this painting is now prominently displayed alongside another work by Caravaggio, The Sacrifice of Issac, and Artemisia Gentileschi's violent, proto-feminist piece Judith Slaying Holofernes. Have a look with Museum View below:
Museum View of The Adolescent Bacchus Caravaggio 1595-7 (From the collection of the Uffizi Gallery)
Medusa (1595 - 1598) by Caravaggio MerisiUffizi Gallery
2. 'Medusa'
Caravaggio painted this shield early on in career for his patron the Cardinal Francesco Maria, but it was not attributed to him until 1631, almost forty years after he had produced it. It refers to the mythological tale in which the Gorgon Medusa, who could turn people into stone with her stare, is cunningly defeated by the heroic Perseus.
The shield was clearly meant to strike fear into one’s enemies, and Caravaggio's depiction of the beheaded Medusa is startlingly violent and lifelike. More unnerving than the blood or the hair composed of writhing snakes, is the expression of eye-popping shock and pain on Medusa’s face, as if she is completely conscious of her own brutal death.
See how it looks on the shield itself in Museum View:
Museum View of Medusa Caravaggio 1595-8 (From the collection of the Uffizi Gallery)
The Cardsharps (c. 1595) by Caravaggio (Michelangelo Merisi)Kimbell Art Museum
3. 'The Cardsharps'
Another painting by Caravaggio which seemed to have disappeared over the centuries, only to be re-discovered relatively recently, The Cardsharps was found in a private collection in 1987. Here we see two cheats in the act of swindling their mark, an innocent looking young boy.
Although the picture is static, we can clearly follow the drama as it unfolds in a clockwise chain of events: the boy glances at his card...
...unaware that the man to his right is also looking and sending a sign to his accomplice in the foreground...
...who retrieves the best card to play from his back pocket. Because we’re aware of all that’s going on, we as the viewers almost become complicit in the cheating ourselves.
Der ungläubige Thomas (um 1601) by Michelangelo Merisi, named CaravaggioPicture Gallery Sanssouci, Prussian Palaces and Gardens Foundation Berlin-Brandenburg
4. 'The Incredulity of Saint Thomas'
This painting depicts the biblical tale in which the risen Christ convinces a dubious Saint Thomas that he has been resurrected by allowing the latter to touch his crucifixion wounds.
We see Christ guide Thomas’ finger into the graphically rendered wound in his torso, and it’s interesting to note that Christ is not adorned with a halo here, as if to emphasize the human suffering he endured.
Zooming in we see Saint Thomas furrowing his brow and widening his eyes in astonishment, and the drama of the event is heightened by Caravaggio’s trademark use of chiaroscuro — the heavy contrast of dark and light tones.
The painting hangs alongside numerous other Baroque masterpieces in Potsdam near Berlin. Check out the impressive main gallery on Museum View below:
Museum View of The Incredulity of Saint Thomas Caravaggio c.1601 (From the collection of the Sanssouci Picture Gallery)
Cupid as Victor (around 1601) by CaravaggioGemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
5. 'Amor Vincit Omnia (Cupid as Victor)'
The title of this famous painting refers to a line in the Roman poet Virgil’s Eclogues which reads in translation as ‘love conquers all’.
What ‘all’ consists of can be seen littered on the floor underneath the mischievously grinning Cupid, the Roman god of love: a lute, violin and manuscript representing the arts; a crown or coronet and armor symbolizing political power; a compass signifying scientific and geographic discovery; and a flower standing for the natural world.
Museum View of Cupid As Victor Caravaggio c.1601 (From the collection of theGemäldegalerie, National Museums in Berlin)
Credits: All media
The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions, listed below, who have supplied the content.
Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu BerlinKimbell Art MuseumPicture Gallery Sanssouci, Prussian Palaces and Gardens Foundation Berlin-BrandenburgUffizi Gallery
Stories from these collections
Online ExhibitPiero di Cosimo,"Perseus Freeing Andromeda"Uffizi Gallery
Online ExhibitStill Life with MackerelKimbell Art Museum
Online ExhibitSchmuckstücke der Bildergalerie von SanssouciPicture Gallery Sanssouci, Prussian Palaces and Gardens Foundation Berlin-Brandenburg
Online ExhibitThe ProverbsGemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Online ExhibitThe Santa Trinita Maestà, CimabueUffizi Gallery
Online ExhibitStanding Shaka BuddhaKimbell Art Museum
Online ExhibitTarquin and Lucretia Picture Gallery Sanssouci, Prussian Palaces and Gardens Foundation Berlin-Brandenburg
Online Exhibit"Backstory" - Young Woman with a Pearl NecklaceGemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Online ExhibitAmico revisited. Drawings by Amico Aspertini and other Bolognese artists Uffizi Gallery
Online ExhibitFour-Armed Ganesha Kimbell Art Museum
Online ExhibitThe Glass of WineGemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
FAQs
The Caravaggio paintings on view are on loan from the Kimbell Art Museum (Fort Worth, Texas), the Wadsworth Atheneum (Hartford, Conn.), The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) and the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit). Included in admission is an audio guide that provides deeper insights.
Where can I see the most Caravaggio paintings? ›
But the highlight of our tour is without a doubt the Galleria Borghese, which boasts the broadest collection of Caravagesque works held in a single location: Boy with a Basket of Fruit, Sick Young Bacchus (possible self-portrait), Madonna with Child and Saint Anne, Saint Jerome Writing, John the Baptist and David with ...
Where are Caravaggio's most famous paintings? ›
The majority of Caravaggio's artwork is located in Rome. The famous Young Sick Bacchus (1593–1494), the Boy with a Basket of Fruit (1593–1494), St. Jerome Writing (1605), David with the head of Goliath (1609–1610), and Madonna and Child with St. Anne (1605) can all be found at the Borghese Gallery.
How many Caravaggio paintings are there? ›
Caravaggio - 105 artworks - painting.
How much is a Caravaggio painting worth? ›
Caravaggio's work has been offered at auction multiple times, with realized prices ranging from 197 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 was the last painting Caravaggio painted? ›
The Martyrdom of Saint Ursula, Caravaggio's (1571–1610) last painting, is on exceptional loan from the Banca Intesa Sanpaolo in Naples and presented with The Met's The Denial of Saint Peter, also created by the artist in the last months of his life.
What is considered Caravaggio's best painting? ›
The first Caravaggio painting masterpiece on our list is perhaps one of his best-known artworks - The Calling of Saint Matthew. This outstanding composition located at the Contarelli Chapel in San Luigi dei Francesi in Rome depicts the situation in which Jesus Christ is calling Matthew to follow him.
What was Caravaggio's masterpiece? ›
The Entombment/Deposition
Described by the Vatican Museum (which is now home to the painting) as “one of Caravaggio's greatest masterpieces,” The Entombment was commissioned by Girolamo Vittrice for his family chapel in S. Maria in Vallicella (Chiesa Nuova) in Rome.
Where is Caravaggio painting located? ›
Caravaggio paintings can be found in churches and palaces across Rome. The masterful paintings of 16th-century artist Michelangelo Merisi (1571-1610), better known as Caravaggio, continue to fascinate more than 400 years after his death.
Why were Caravaggio's paintings so dark? ›
In his paintings of individual saints, Caravaggio used a dark background to isolate the figures, which focuses the viewer's attention entirely on the expressive emotional qualities of the saint.
Born Michelangelo Merisi, Caravaggio is the name of the artist's home town in Lombardy in northern Italy. In 1592 at the age of 21 he moved to Rome, Italy's artistic centre and an irresistible magnet for young artists keen to study its classical buildings and famous works of art.
Who influenced Caravaggio? ›
The influence of Borromeo may also be detected in Caravaggio's austere low-toned palette and his insistent emphasis on poverty and humility as essential Christian virtues. It is also possible that Caravaggio visited Venice at some stage during his formative years.
Who taught Caravaggio to paint? ›
Beginnings in Rome (1592/95–1600) Following his initial training under Simone Peterzano, in 1592, Caravaggio left Milan for Rome in flight after "certain quarrels" and the wounding of a police officer.
Was Caravaggio Catholic or Protestant? ›
Inherently Catholic
Truly, many have called Caravaggio the “first modern artist”.
Was Caravaggio a religious painter? ›
Caravaggio (born September 29, 1571, Milan or Caravaggio [Italy]—died July 18/19, 1610, Porto Ercole, Tuscany) 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.
Is there a Caravaggio in Chicago? ›
Visitors to the Art Institute have a rare opportunity to view a stunning pair of paintings by Caravaggio, on loan from the Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, Texas and the Detroit Institute of Arts. The works, dating from 1595 and 1598, rarely travel, so this trip to Chicago is a special journey.
Where is the only painting by Da Vinci in the United States? ›
It was acquired by the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. US from Franz Joseph II, Prince of Liechtenstein in February 1967 for a record price for a painting of between $5 and $6 million. It is the only painting by Leonardo on public view in the Americas. National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Does the Art Institute of Chicago have a Caravaggio? ›
Among Friends and Rivals: Caravaggio in Rome, now open in Gallery 211, features two rare and remarkable loans by Caravaggio, from the Detroit Institute of Arts and the Kimbell Art Museum, alongside paintings by Caravaggio's followers from the Art Institute's permanent collection.
