Caravaggio

“ Caraffa, a distinguished Neapolitan family, which gave birth to a number of distinguished ecclesiastics, Paul IV. one of them.
Caraglio, an eminent Italian engraver, born at Verona, engraved on gems and medals as well as copper-plate, after the works of the great masters (1500-1570) .
Caravaggio, an Italian painter, disdained the ideal and the ideal style of art, and kept generally to crass reality, often in its grossest forms; a man of a violent temper, which hastened his end; a painting by him of “Christ and the Disciples at Emmaus” is in the National Gallery, London (1569-1609) . ”

“ Polidoro da Caravaggio, from a manual labourer in the works of the Vatican, became an artist of the first celebrity, and distinguished himself in the imitation of antique bassirelievi, painting both sacred and profane subjects in a most beautiful chiaroscuro. Nothing of this kind was ever seen more perfect, whether we consider the composition, the mechanism, or the design; and Raffaello and he, of all artists, are considered in this respect to have approached nearest to the style of the ancients. ”

“ Caravaggio was obliged to take to his weapons, and make sanguinary onslaughts. In our civilised nineteenth century everything was accomplished according to law, but not with less passion. One has to make great demands to receive even a little; this has been true in all times, and this is precisely what Courbet did. He was a remarkable character striving for high aims, an eccentric man of genius, a modern Narcissus for ever contemplating himself in his vanity, and yet he was the truest friend, the readiest to sacrifice himself ”

“ And in the general imitation of the flesh tints the greatest artists have apparently abandoned the task in despair, and contented themselves with a correct utterance of form and expression, with well-harmonized darks and lights, with little attention to the hues of Nature. Such was Caravaggio always, and Guercino often, and all their respective followers. Such was Michel Angelo, and often Raffaelle,—though at other times the color of Raffaelle is not inferior in truth and glory to Titian, greatest of the Venetian colorists: as in his portraits of Leo X., Julius, and some parts of his frescos. ”

“ Caravaggio (Naturalist: 1569-1609) .
Michael Angelo Amerighi, the son of a mason, is usually called Caravaggio from his birthplace, a town of that name near Milan. [99] He was the leader of the so-called "Naturalist" School (see introduction to "The Later Italian Schools") , which numbered among its [Pg 181] disciples Spagnoletto (235) and the Dutch Gerard von Honthorst (1444) . The characteristics of his art, as described below, were not out of keeping with the sombre character of the man. [100] He had established himself as a painter at Rome, when he had to fly for homicide. ”

“ The high altar has an Assumption by Bassano.
The first chapel in the left aisle has a St. Sebastian by Massei. In the fifth chapel, of St. Matthew, three pictures by Caravaggio represent the vocation and martyrdom of that saint.
"The paintings of Caravaggio at S. Luigi belong to his most comprehensive works. The Martyrdom of St Matthew, with the angel with a palm branch squatting upon a cloud, and a boy running away, screaming, though highly animated, is an offensive production. On the other hand, the Calling of the Apostle may be considered as a genre picture of grand characteristic figures ”

“ Don't you see it, the scene when he walks in alone—the good Livingstone in his best clothes, so happy and so important, with his best brand of European conversation in the show-window—a comparison most likely of Caravaggio's theory of treating wall spaces with Correggio's. And what Ambrogi wants to discuss is American railroad terminal facilities! Ambrogi is a man of the people. He's made his own way up from the bottom. He has probably never heard of Correggio in his life. ”

“ This new school had been planted in Naples by Caravaggio; and beneath that glowing sky arose a number of masters who devoted themselves not only to the reproduction of [Pg 75] unidealized nature, but the delineation of human passions in their sternest and most violent demonstrations; preferring, in fact, to depict the darkest and stormiest side of humanity. For this purpose, depth of coloring and dark shadows were employed. These masters were not wanting in talent, nor were their creations without effect and influence ”

“ Baglione makes particular mention of Gio. Serodine, of Ascona, in Lombardy, and enumerates many works by him, more remarkable for their facility of execution than their excellence. There remains no public specimen of him, except a Decollation of S. John at S. Lorenzo fuor delle Mura. One of the latest of the school of Caravaggio was Tommaso Luini, a Roman, who, from his quarrelsome disposition, and his style, was called Il Caravaggino. He worked in Rome, and appeared most to advantage when he painted the designs of his master, Sacchi, as at S. Maria in Via. ”

“ Such men may be said to be endowed with a double vision, an inward and an outward; the inward seeing not unfrequently the reverse of what is seen by the outward. It was this which caused Annibal Caracci to remark, on seeing for the first time a picture by Caravaggio, that he thought a style totally opposite might be made very captivating; and the hint, it is said, sunk deep into and was not lost on Guido, who soon after realized what his master had thus imagined. Perhaps no one ever caught more from others than Raffaelle. ”

“ He is seldom found in collections; but, from the above peculiarities, I have more than once recognized his works. He returned to Venice, and soon afterwards died there; hence he was omitted by Ridolfi, and scarcely noticed by Zanetti.
Monsieur Valentino, as he is called in Italy, who was born at Brie, near Paris, and studied in Rome, became one of the most judicious followers of Caravaggio. He painted in the Quirinal the Martyrdom of the Saints Processo and Martiniano. He was a young artist of great promise, but was cut off by a premature death. His easel pictures are not very rare in Rome. ”

“ He is a graceful follower of Caravaggio; and particularly excels in confined or candle [Pg 448] lights, much in the style of Gherardo della Notte; but he is perhaps more select. The Dying Magdalen, in possession of the Grand Duke of Tuscany, and the S. Sebastian, cured by S. Irene, which belongs to Prince Borghese, in Rome, are in this style. But it was not the only one in which Rustichino painted. He had visited Rome, and had studied the works of the Caracci and of Guido, of which traces may be discovered in several of his works ”

“ The history of Italy shows us, that Beccaria’s opinions on the subject were not exactly correct, for, while the upper classes challenged each other to single combat, we find other grades of society, even artists, avenging their wrongs with the stiletto. From this charge, we must, however, exonerate 321 Michael Angelo Caravaggio, who, to avenge the insult offered to him by Arpino, who had presumed to criticise some of his productions, sent him a challenge, which was rejected on the plea of disparity of condition ”

“ He loves character above all, and wants it proletarian. Within his chosen limitations he is a powerful and sincere artist. His masterpieces are the Entombment in the Vatican, and the Death of the Virgin in the Louvre, Figure 309, which created so much disapproval that it had to be removed from its altar. Both pictures take the theme out of the realm of legend, making it 454drastic and contemporary. Both, while rejecting all grandeur in the figures, preserve the tradition thereof in the composition. One gets Caravaggio in epitome in The Peter denying his Lord of the Vatican. ”

“ Another convert to the Caracci School, was Andrea Vaccaro, [124] the friend and competitor of Massimo, a man made for imitation, says Lanzi, and says too much; for, if he had no equal in that of Caravaggio, he was, when imitating Guido, inferior to Massimo: nor did he, till after the demise of Stanzioni, acquire that supremacy at Naples which remained undisputed till the arrival of Giordano, young, vigorous, and fraught with the novel style of Pietro Beretini. Both concurred for the great altar-piece of Sta. ”

“ Secchi, Gio. Batista, called Il Caravaggio, painted in 1619. Borsieri, iv. 317. In the Pitture d'Italia, vol. i. p. 214, he is called Caravaggino, and an inscription is cited:—Jo. Bapt. Sicc. de Caravag. Secchiari, Giulio, a Modenese, d. 1631. Tiraboschi. iv. 59. Segala, Gio., a Venetian, d. 1720, aged 57. Zanetti. iii. 352. Seiter, Daniele, a scholar of Loth. iii. 292. Sellitto, Carlo, a Neapolitan, scholar of Annibal Caracci. Dominici. ii. 395. Semenza, or Sementi, Giacomo, a Bolognese, b. 1580, d. young. Baglione and Malvasia. v. 148. Semini, Michele, a scholar of Maratta. ”

“ You shall be Prince of Sant' Ilario, Giovanni, as I was before my father died; and I will give you that estate outright, and the palace in the Corso to live in."
"Perhaps we might live in my palace," suggested Corona. It seemed strange to her to be discussing her own marriage, but it was necessary to humour the old Prince. "Of course," he said. "I forgot all about it. You have places enough to live in. One forgets that you will in the end be the richest couple in Italy. Ha!" he cried, in sudden enthusiasm, "the Saracinesca are not dead yet! ”

“ But the virility of his taste, the impassioned motion of his groups, the simplicity, breadth, and never excelled elegance and probability of his drapery, with the forcible chiaroscuro of his compositions, make us regret the narrowness of the walk, to which he confined his powers.
No painter ever painted his own mind so forcibly as Michael Angelo Amerigi, surnamed Il Caravaggi. [49] To none nature ever set limits with a more decided hand. Darkness gave him light ”

“ And now, with your permission, I will return to Saracinesca. Believe me, the news that you expect us will be good enough to tell Giovanni."
"You may greet him from me. But will you not rest awhile before you ride back? You must be tired."
"No fear of that!" answered the Prince. "You have put a new man into an old one. I shall never tire of bearing the news of your greetings."
So the old man left her, and mounted his horse and rode up the pass. But Corona remained for hours in the vaulted hall, pacing up and down. ”

“ Giovanni told him the truth, how he had written a letter to the Governor, and had seen him in person, as well as Jacopo Contarini.
"Of course," Giovanni concluded, "you know best. If you find the book as you and he hid it together, he must have learned your secrets in some other way."
"We can easily see," answered old Beroviero, rising quickly. "Come here. Get the crowbar from the corner, and help me to lift the stone." ”

“ I will hire horses and return to Terni to-night. My business in Rome is urgent. There is some suspense there in my absence."
"You will drink a glass before going?" asked Giovanni; and without waiting for an answer, he strode from the room.
"And what does your Excellency think of your relation?" asked the curate, when he was alone with the Prince.
"A terrible-looking fellow! But—" The Prince made a face and a gesture indicating a question in regard to the innkeeper's character.
"Oh, do not be afraid," answered the priest. "He is the most honest man alive." ”

“ Round these emblems of their faith and of their existence as a community the citizen soldiers would rally, bearing the Car forward to victory with irresistible enthusiasm in moments of advantage, or defending it with despairing resolve when defeat threatened. Thus was originated the Caroccio, adopted afterwards by all the Communes of Italy—an exalted and beautiful idea, which, though often debased by association with enterprises of greed or revenge, became also the guide and inspiration of the Lombard peoples in their noble struggle for liberty in the succeeding centuries. ”

“ Go to Saracinesca if you will, and if you can. If not, go somewhere else. Take heart. Things are not always as black as they look."
Giovanni straightened himself as though by an effort, and grasped his father's broad, brown hand.
"Thank you," he said. "Good-bye. I will come down and see you in a few days. Good-bye!"
His voice trembled and he hurriedly left the room. The prince stood still a moment and then threw himself into a deep chair, staring at the lamp and biting his gray moustache savagely, as though to hide some almost uncontrollable emotion. ”

“ Such judgments had been given before and might be given again.
"We had better send for our lawyer," said the prince, at last. "The sooner we know the real value of that bit of parchment the better it will be for us. I cannot bear the suspense of waiting a day to know the truth. Imagine that the very chair I am sitting upon may belong to San Giacinto. I never liked the fellow, from the day when I first found him in his inn at Aquila."
"It is not his fault," answered Giovanni, quietly. "This is a perfectly simple matter. ”

“ The porter had answered that, for the present, there were standing orders to admit no one; and as Giovanni could boast of no especial intimacy, and had no valid excuse to give, he was obliged to be satisfied. He had patiently waited in the Villa Borghese and by the band-stand on the Pincio, taking it for granted that sooner or later Corona's carriage would appear; but when at last he had seen her brougham, she had driven rapidly past him, thickly veiled, and he did not think she had even noticed him. ”