Jusepe de RiberaSpanish, 1591–1652St. Sebastian
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Not receiving at present
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Cleveland, United States
It belongs to the collection, but is not on display at present.
- Checked
- In this state since
- Source
- The museum
About the work
This subtly drawn study in red chalk with ink accents depicts the moment just before the Roman soldier Sebastian was shot through with arrows for refusing to renounce his Christian faith. The young martyr turns hopefully toward heaven as if comforted by divine light. Ribera favored the subject because it allowed him to study the expressive possibilities of the bound human figure. A number of related drawings by the artist from the same period treat similar themes of saints bound in punishment. Although Spanish by birth, Jusepe de Ribera spent most of his life in Naples, where he became the dominant artistic figure until his death in 1652.
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Particulars
- Accession number
- 1997.53
In the catalog
Sources
- The Cleveland Museum of Art
- Image: The Cleveland Museum of Art — Museum open access
Meanwhile, in the life of Jusepe de Ribera
The whole life1616–1656 · Workplace
Naples
1626
The Cross of the Order of Christ from Pope Urban VIII
In 1626 Pope Urban VIII awards Ribera the Cross of the Portuguese Order of Christ.
late 1620s
Recognised as Naples's leading painter
Ribera's career picks up in the late 1620s, and he is accepted as the leading painter in Naples thereafter; he runs a workshop with many pupils, among them Francesco Fracanzano, Luca Giordano, Bartolomeo Passante and Hendrick de Somer.
1630
Velázquez visits Ribera in Naples
In 1630 Diego Velázquez visits Ribera in Naples — evidence of how well known the master was in his homeland.
1630s
The palette brightens: from tenebrism to colour
In the 1630s Ribera's colour range changes under the influence of Anthony van Dyck, Guido Reni and others: stark tenebrism gives way to more diffused light.
