The Resurrection

Joos van Winghe studied art in his hometown of Brussels and traveled to Rome, where he stayed for four years. After a short period back in the Spanish-ruled Netherlands, he moved to Frankfurt. The wiry, broken outlines, linear use of white highlighting, strong play of light, exaggerated gestures, and treatment of details such as beards and drapery seen here are hallmarks of van Winghe’s drawing style.

Exploding with energy, this work displays great painterly freedom. The resurrected Christ rises above the tomb in a burst of light as the sun peeks over the distant horizon. Christ startles the soldiers, who had been sleeping through their watch (and they must have found the angel hardly less surprising). By including the three crosses of Golgotha and the three Marys, who have come through the gate to visit the tomb, van Winghe extended the narrative backward and forward through time.