Jesus' Crucifixion In Art

The symbol of Christ on the cross has infiltrated culture in innumerable ways, and depictions have become ubiquitous. There is no other subject matter that better reflects the historical progression of artistic expression. This is fitting, as there is no other event that has had comparable effect on all aspects of human history.

"Pieta"
Artist: William-Adolphe Bouguereau
1876
Painting

This is a large-scale interpretation of the classic Pietà theme, showing the Virgin Mary mourning the body of Christ. At the center of the composition, consumed by her black veil, Mary cradles her child, entreating the viewer to pity with her gaze. Golden aureoles, resembling the gold-leaf details on Renaissance icons and altar-work, surround the heads of the two central figures, while a group of mourning angels encircles the scene, echoing the central compositional shapes.

This oil on canvas is in a private collection

"The Yellow Christ"
Artist: Paul Gauguin
1889
Painting

With Le Christ Jaune (The Yellow Christ) Gauguin used a representation of a 17th-century painted crucifix that hung in the Trémalo Chapel. The subject of the painting was actually the peasants kneeling before the crucifix. Gauguin wanted to portray the isolation and piety of the local peasantry in Pont-Aven France where he was visiting.

This painting is housed at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, NY

- page 28 of 32 -