Skip to main content

Carlo Maratta

Maratta SP
Self-portrait, ca. 1640-1713


Born either on May 13 or 15, (depending on whether you read the Italian or English entry on Wikipedia) Carlo Maratta—sometimes written as Maratti— was born in 1625. At the age of 11 he entered the studio of Andrea Sacchi where his training was heavily influenced by the Bolognese school and the teachings of Annibale Carracci. Here Maratta also learned the fundamentals of draftsmanship from Sacchi, who was incredibly skilled at drawing figure studies, something that Maratta maintained throughout his life. In fact, this concept of drawing, or disegno encompassed a way of seeing and working in art that involved choice and discretion or "prudence", not merely copying reality as Caravaggio had done but contemplating nature and reworking it to one's artistic ideals. This idea was also carried by Maratta's friend and contemporary Giovanni Pietro Bellori, who would write his own biography of the artists alla Vasari but with this philosophy of art.



Carlo Maratta - A Young Man - WGA14053
A Young Man, 1663

This is one of my favourite portraits from the Baroque. Here we see a style that appears Flemish with the ornate jabot yet Maratta suffuses the sitter in a warm, intense light that leaves the "short" side of the face in shadow. Maratta makes no effort to separate him from the background which is also warm, but only to have the face emerge, with the bright catchlight in the right eye to focus our attention and intensify the portrait. Hiding the hands is also interesting here. The pyramidal composition creates a sense of authority and solemn power, yet with a real sensitivity to the expression of the face. Mysterious and emotional, Maratta creates a portrait that conjures Van Dyck but with a unique Italian sensibility.



Carlo Maratta - Madonna and Child Enthroned with Angels and Saints - WGA14047
Madonna and Child Enthroned with Angels and Saints, ca.1680-1690


Maratta's use of chiaroscuro and color, bathed again in a warm light, appears straightforward but upon closer inspection we see a clever use of figures. The figure on the right holding the book and pointing to Madonna is a portrait in itself, and his twisting body reminds us of Mannerism but in a more realistic way. Note the black and white robes, possibly saying something about the Church. The cardinal looking up at Madonna with open hands, again in twisting fashion, seems to be gesturing about his representation of religion to the viewer. The angels above show two facing each other and two looking down upon Madonna but in different directions...these four angels form a straight diagonal line yet are dynamic by their head and body positioning. The angel to the right of Madonna is standing contraposto with the leg pointing toward her, yet subtly appearing to nearly kick the cardinal in the back of the head! Look at the way the baby angel on the floor pointing to the sign is painted...a perfect Classical figure.

Maratta may have been a "minor" painter of the Baroque but there is nothing minor about his style or technique. In future posts I will be doing some examples of drawing both from Sacchi and Maratta to illustrate their incredible draftsmanship.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Isaac Levitan, Russian Poet of Nature

Before the Storm, 1890 Born August 30, 1860, Isaac Ilyich Levitan was a Russian landscape painter. Born in Congress Poland to a Jewish family, Levitan would study art in Moscow where he would become friends with Anton Chekov and his brother, Nikolay who was also an artist. Levitan's work has a unique mood that is very distinct from the Impressionism of France and the Classicism of Russia...sometimes compared to Monet but still different. Levitan has a rare presence with astute attention to detail and a fascination with light at different times of day. At times highly accurate, while in his more personal work deeply Impressionistic and imbued with rich tone and color. There is something about Levitan that lingers in your mind long after seeing his work...in a way that is individual and personal, not attached to a specific genre or movement, but to the world around him. In Before the Storm , Levitan captures a moment so stunning it seems to defy words...of sunlight piercing ...

More Old Master Drawings

There is nothing in all the world more beautiful or significant of the laws of the universe than the nude human body. Robert Henri Charles Louis Müller , A Standing Female Nude Leaning Against an Arch, ca.1864 Once again I decided to talk about some Old Master drawings and delve into the thinking behind how these drawings may have been created and the knowledge of the artist. In the above drawing by Müller, done in sanguine with white chalk highlights, the figure is drawn from a low view-point, with her body twisting toward her left side while resting on one knee. Note how Müller alternates the bent right leg with the bent left arm to create dynamic contrast. The right arm is also foreshortened and partially in shadow. Expressing power and femininity, this is a study that is Renaissance in spirit, even Mannerist, revealing the female nude as sculptural yet always graceful. Anton Raphael Mengs , Seated male nude viewed from the back, 1755 One of several Academic nu...

Chiaroscuro Landscapes with a Forgotten Dutch Master

Italian landscape, ca. 1645 Born around 1615 in Utrecht, Netherlands, Jan Dirksz Both was a painter and etcher whose dramatic landscapes influenced Dutch painting deeply. Both spent time in Rome and Venice where he discovered several Masters, including the vibrant landscapes of Claude Lorrain. Where Lorrain used Classicism heavily in his paintings, with Roman architecture and figures, Both concentrated more on the luminous effects of light and elevated trees to a noble kind of natural architecture. Both also created atmosphere and mood with perspective in a way that not only depicts a view, but invites us to share a beautiful moment of fleeting sunlight. In Italian landscape above, Both leaves much of the foreground in shadow, something most landscape painters would never do. Note how the light is coming from the far left, beyond the frame of the painting. Look at how it falls across the rustic path—Both creates a sliver of light where his figures stand, on horseback, pos...