FREE WEBINAR | “The Top 10 Sculptors of the Italian Renaissance” with Dr. Rocky Ruggiero
September 10, 2024
1 hour
In “The Calling of St. Matthew” (c. 1599-1600) Caravaggio depicts the moment of St. Matthew’s spiritual awakening. However, the divine nature of the moment is subtle. Only the barest hint of a halo identifies Christ on the right, while St. Matthew is identified by light and gesture alone. A beam of light illuminates St. Matthew’s face as he points to himself, as though to ask “Me?” as Christ reaches towards him on the right. This work hangs in the Contarelli Chapel in San Luigi dei Francesi in Rome, Italy, alongside two other masterpieces completed by Caravaggio as part of the same large-scale commission.