St Michael and the Dragon by Guido Reni. Michael came to represent the triumph of light over darkness as interpreted by the Christian Church, in the teachings of which he came to embody the triumph of Christ over anti-Christ. Guido Reni’s resplendently theatrical depiction here of St Michael slaying the dragon shows Michael as part Roman soldier, part ballet dancer. It was painted in 1635 and can be seen in the church of Santa Maria della Consolazione in Rome. The picture is a beautiful example of Reni’s late style, which was repeatedly admired by his contemporaries for what they called “grazi

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St Michael and the Dragon by Guido Reni. Michael came to represent the triumph of light over darkness as interpreted by the Christian Church, in the teachings of which he came to embody the triumph of Christ over anti-Christ. Guido Reni’s resplendently theatrical depiction here of St Michael slaying the dragon shows Michael as part Roman soldier, part ballet dancer. It was painted in 1635 and can be seen in the church of Santa Maria della Consolazione in Rome. The picture is a beautiful example of Reni’s late style, which was repeatedly admired by his contemporaries for what they called “grazia” – a critical term much used by writers in the Baroque period, and one with dual implications.

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Size: 3627px × 5190px
Photo credit: © Ivy Close Images / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No

Keywords: 1600s, 1630s, 17th, anti-chirst, art, artist, baroque, century, chiristianity, christ, christian, church, consolazione, darkness, della, dragon, evil, good, guido, italian, jesus, light, maria, michael, painting, religious, reni, santa, st, style