Crucifixion with Virgin and St. John
The Crucifixion with the Virgin and Saint John by Hendrick ter Brugghen, oil in canvas, circa 1624-25. This powerful image was probably painted for a Catholic "hidden church" in Ter Brugghen's city of Utrecht, where Catholicism was tolerated but not encouraged. The artist, a Protestant, recaptures the devotional intensity of earlier German and Dutch altarpieces in his stark composition and in the angular figure of Christ. However, the rhythmic draperies, convincing volumes, and folkish figures of Mary and John recall Ter Brugghen's experience of Caravaggio in Rome. The color combinations and hypnotic light are very much his own. According to the accounts in the New Testament, Jesus, whom Christians believe to be the Son of God as well as the Messiah, was arrested, tried, and sentenced by Pontius Pilate to be scourged, and finally crucified. Collectively referred to as the Passion, Jesus' suffering and redemptive death by crucifixion are the central aspects of Christian theology concerning the doctrines of salvation and atonement. Jesus' crucifixion is described in the four canonical gospels, referred to in the New Testament Epistles, attested to by other ancient sources, and is firmly established as a historical event confirmed by non-Christian sources, though there is no consensus on the precise details of what exactly occurred.
Size: 2937px × 4500px
Photo credit: © Photo Researchers / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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