Art & Architecture at San Luigi dei Francesi

On Wednesday 16 April, students in the Art & Architecture course left their month-long study of the Italian Renaissance behind and ventured into the Baroque era. The first stop was the church of San Luigi dei Francesi, the French National Church in Rome, which is home to three paintings done by Michelangelo da Merisi, the artist otherwise known as Caravaggio.

After introducing students to the life of Caravaggio, Dr. Laura Flusche led students through a careful examination of the three canvases that the artist painted for the Contarelli Chapel in the first decade of the seventeenth century.

Study began with The Calling of Saint Matthew (above), and proceeded to The Martyrdom of Saint Matthew (below), and Saint Matthew and the Angel. Students were encouraged to think about the ways in which Caravaggio's paintings differed from those of the High Renaissance - and to examine in particular his use of naturalism, theatricality, and dramatic lighting in his works.

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