Ghirlandaio’s Vocation of the Apostles
January 23rd 2021
The Apostles Peter and Andrew kneel on the ground before Christ. They wear cloaks as if ready to set out on a journey. They are shown barefoot, in accordance with what Christ will say to them later on in the
GIOVANNI BELLINI’S VIRGIN AND CHILD WITH ST JOHN THE BAPTIST AND A FEMALE SAINT
January 16th 2021
In today’s gospel passage, on seeing Jesus, St John the Baptist calls out “Behold the Lamb of God!” Although this scene is not shown very often in Western Art it has entered the iconography of the Baptist. For example,
GIOVANNI BELLINI’S BAPTISM OF CHRIST
January 9th 2021
This very large and beautiful painting, with it subtle use of light and colour, can still be found in situ in the side aisle of the once Dominican Church of Santa Corona in Vicenza. Christ is shown centre foreground. He
Jan Gossaert’s Adoration of the Kings
January 2nd 2021
You can view the painting in higher resolution at https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/jan-gossaert-jean-gossart-the-adoration-of-the-kings Our Lady sits with the Infant Jesus on her knee. Clothed in a mantle of ultramarine blue, she is the focus of this lavish and incredibly detailed painting. A
The Nativity at Night, Geertgen tot Sint Jans
December 19th 2020
The holy child lies in a manger watched over by his mother Mary. Behind her in the shadows, Joseph looks on. The ox and the ass are in the centre but it is Mary’s brightly lit face and those
Zurbarán’s Agnus Dei at the Prado
December 12th 2020
In the verse which follows today’s Gospel passage, John the Baptist sees Jesus coming towards him and says, “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.” (Jn 1:29) This exclamation just about sums up this
Bruegel’s The Sermon of St John the Baptist
December 5th 2020
In this painting you really have to look carefully to see John the Baptist. Bruegel deliberately focuses our attention first on the crowd who have gathered to hear him and then our eyes follow a diagonal to a light filled
Murillo’s Martyrdom of St Andrew
November 28th 2020
At first sight, the gaunt figure of St Andrew dominates the scene. But as you look you begin to notice one by one the figures in the crowd who like you are looking at this scene of martyrdom. It is
Caravaggio’s Crowning with Thorns in Prato
November 21st 2020
The artist uses light and shadow to draw attention to the central figure of Christ and in particular, to his bare right shoulder and arm and his upturned face. Nothing is known about the commission. The painting only came to
Titian’s Presentation of the Virgin in the Temple
November 14th 2020
Titian painted this canvas between 1534 and 1538 for a room in the Scoula Grande di S. Maria della Carità in Venice. Later on the room became part of the Galleria dell’ Accademia. “ The Golden Legend” relates that Mary
