Nicolas PoussinFrancie, 1594–1665Extreme Unction
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Kde je teď „Extreme Unction“? Sbírka: Fitzwilliamovo muzeum, Cambridge. Zda je dnes vystaveno, nevíme.
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Extreme Unction (or Final Anointing) is one of a set of seven scenes representing the sacraments of the Catholic Church, painted between 1638 and 1640 by the French artist Nicolas Poussin (1594–1665).
Commissioned in Rome by the renowned connoisseur Cassiano dal Pozzo, the scene depicts a dying man being anointed with oil in accordance with the rites of the early Roman church. Drawing on his extensive study of the art and artefacts of classical antiquity, Poussin reproduced the costumes, setting, composition, and frieze-like posture of the figures, thereby heightening the realism of the scene. This classicising tendency went on to make an inestimable impact on Western art, influencing many of the greatest painters of subsequent generations, from Jacques-Louis David and Ingres to Cézanne and Picasso. To this day, artists continue to be inspired by Poussin’s work and ideas about painting.
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In treating themes of death and dying, Poussin revealed himself at his most ambitious, consciously pitting himself against no less an artist than the ancient Greek painter Apelles who was, Poussin wrote, "[much] pleased... to represent scenes of death." Today, the sobriety and control of Poussin's paintings can seem difficult, or remote, to audiences. But in Extreme Unction subject and style are so perfectly aligned that Poussin's stark, lyrical, line, and controlled play of light and shadow bring out the full depth of emotion that marks this momentous scene.
Death remains one of the last great taboos in much of the developed world. Poussin's painting addresses with potency and directness the universal message of human mortality: through the rhythmic beauty of the compositional line and passages of resplendent, even joyous, colour, Poussin allows us to contemplate and engage with the most natural and inevitable of events in human existence.
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- Inventární číslo
- PD.11-2012
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- Wikidata
- Obrázek: Fitzwilliamovo muzeum — Nicolas Poussin · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
V životě: Nicolas Poussin
Celý životopis1624–1640
Domenichino’s academy, anatomy, measuring ancient statues
He resumed his study of anatomy with the surgeon Larchet, drew models at Domenichino’s academy, worked in the open air and measured ancient statues — on the back of the drawing “The Victory of Joshua” survive his measurements of the Apollo Belvedere; unlike many, he did not “restore” the lost fragments of antiques. In his Roman years he began to learn modelling, made wax models, arranged them in the order he wanted on a board, and copied Titian’s “Bacchanal” — in oil and as a bas-relief together with one of the Duquesnoy brothers.
1630s
Cassiano dal Pozzo — his chief patron
Poussin’s flowering coincided with his complete abandonment of church commissions: he gathered a circle of patrons around him but strove for independence, accepting commissions from connoisseurs without binding himself to any of them permanently. The most important was Cassiano dal Pozzo; in the surviving correspondence the relationship comes close to servitude, although the painter did not live in his house.
1630s
Brother-in-law Gaspard Dughet — his first pupil
After the wedding Poussin went on living in the house on the Via Paolina; with him lived Anne-Marie’s brother Gaspard Dughet, the future well-known landscape painter, and from 1636 his younger brother Jean. Poussin became Gaspard’s first teacher, and Gaspard later took his surname; the marriage seems to have been a happy one, but childless.
1639
Begins his correspondence with Paul Fréart de Chantelou
From 1639 until the painter’s death runs his correspondence with the court counsellor and royal maître d’hôtel Paul Fréart de Chantelou — a monument of long friendship and the chief source on Poussin’s daily occupations; the letters are in French and make no literary claims.
1640
December 1640: Poussin returns to Paris
François Sublet de Noyers, Superintendent of the King’s Buildings, whose invitations Poussin had declined, sent his cousins Roland and Paul Fréart to Rome, offering the title of First Painter to the King and a substantial residence at the Tuileries. Poussin yielded, and in December 1640 he was back in Paris.
