Art Institute of Chicago

The Lamentation of Christ (recto and verso)

Polidoro da Caravaggio

Date

1527/35

Medium

Pen and brown ink, with small splatters of opaque green, gray and pink paint, with touches of white gouache (recto) and pen and brown ink and brush and brown wash (verso) on ivory laid paper

Culture

Italy

Department

Prints and Drawings

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

This two-sided sheet features variations on the subject of the Lamentation of Christ, the period of mourning over Christ’s body after his crucifixion and before his resurrection. The drawing’s most finished side is divided into three scenes. The dead Christ is mourned by his followers at center. His tomb is prepared for his burial at left, and the bodies of the good and bad thieves—the two thieves who were crucified alongside Christ—are carried away at upper right. The sheet’s less-finished side contains a variation on the lamentation scene on the drawing’s front. Although he was influenced by his master, Raphael, Polidoro later adopted a style of drawing in pen and ink characterized by reduced forms made of agitated strokes and rapid hatching, as seen here.

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