Cleveland Museum of Art

Crucifixion

Date

c. 1680

Medium

terracotta

Culture

(Southern?) France, 17th century

Department

European Painting and Sculpture

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

This work is quite atypical for the period due to its physiognomy and composition: Christ's figure is stout in comparison to the slender, elongated figures more common at the time. This effect is compounded by the tight focus of the composition; the artist emphasizes Christ by minimizing background and ornamentation. The design is adapted from an engraving after Charles Le Brun (1619–1690) who studied in Rome and became primary painter to Louis XIV of France. The innovative, simplistic approach of the relief contrasts to the style that Le Brun championed as head of the French Academy. Scholars dispute the legitimacy of the frame as original to the piece, due to its emphatic decoration compared to the solemn relief.

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