Reese Baldwin ARTH205 G1 Fra Angelico Mocking of Christ

we can tell from the teal background that this is a fresco painting. If it were oil this background would more closely resemble a aqua marine blue or green. It being pale and bright is a key indication of a fresco painting. The green curtain also provides great contrast for the various items and body parts that are mocking Jesus above. These items are not random; “After Jesus' condemnation by the Sanhedrin, some spat on him (Mark 14:65). He was blindfolded and beaten, and then mocked: "Prophesy! Who hit you?" (Luke 22:63).” The items that are shown taunting Jesus are from the story of the taunting of Jesus in the New testament. This includes the blindfold. What is interesting, though, is that Fra Angelico decided to depict those taunting Jesus as various ligaments of humans, and not complete figures. In other depictions of this scene (such as that done by JUSEPE DE RIBERA) the figures have been shown as full bodies representing roman soldiers. My interpretation of his choice in using these abstract figures is to draw attention to the main subject matter in the painting, Jesus’s face being tormented, and not distract the viewer with the details of who is tormenting him.

light source / shadow.

there is only one light source. This defines how the elements in the pictorial space of the painting interact with each other and make the overall viewing experience cohesive. This directly relates to the composition of the piece. Every piece of the painting is lit the same way, like the drapery of Jesus's robe, for example. In the example of the drapery the shadows are constructed so elegantly that they give the illusion of a soft texture.

Fresco technique

linear perspective on the red “throne”

This throne is a mockery of the royal throne Jesus usually rests upon - it is more closely related to the word “Box”. Moving on, as Jesus is being humiliated, the box he is slumped upon shows linear perspective as the two sides of it come closer to one another, giving the illusion of receding space. The use of linear perspective in the context of Florence was being popularized at the time, so it makes sense that we see it here. The sides of the box are shown with strong contrast to the background, as they are complementary colors. Fra Angelico made the skillful choice to not use black lines here, even though we know he could have because of the black lines in the crown of thorns.

foreshortening

Fra Angelico uses foreshortening at Jesus's feet to make them closer to the viewer and create the illusion of depth. This works especially well considering the perspective of his “throne” (previously discussed). Fra Angelico chooses to use foreshortening again with Mary and Saint Dominic, but does not make them bigger as they rest in the foreground, but in fact makes them smaller. I think Fra Angelico does this to acknowledge that they are important figures in the scene, yet keep the main focus on Jesus and his torment. It is subtle, but there is also foreshortening happening within the various items that taunt Jesus, which creates more hierarchy around the central focus of the painting.

Virgin Mary looking away

she can't bear to see her son being humiliated in this way, so she looks away and meditates to cope. Her meditation is shown by her deep focus that extends past the foreground. This also connects the viewer of the painting to the work. It is a painful thing for a mother to see her own son get tormented.

summary

This painting relates to the development of Fra Angelico’s career as an artist by showing how he was able to use the somewhat rudimentary tools available in his time to create artwork that pushes the mediums of the day. Fra Angelico worked without the benefits of oil paint in this piece, yet was still able to achieve the values associated with oil. Working without the ability to layer coats of oil paint to create deeper hue, saturation, and transparency, Fra Angelico is using a fresco technique in “The Mocking Of Christ”. His application of this medium is striking, as he was still able to convey depth of field, color contrast, and even transparency in the piece. He pulled this feat off with visual illusions he strung together with hard to master techniques. Although the techniques of the time were being popularized, this did not make it any easier to successfully pull one off in a painting, let alone multiple at the same time while maintaining the integrity of the composition of the painting. The most notable technique he employed here is the linear perspective. After looking at “The Mocking Of Christ” for just a moment, it is clear that Fra Angelico was a mathematical genius. The floor of the painting is an immediate indication of receding space. The platform that Mary and Saint Domonic sit on recedes, as indicated by their crouched positions. Then we move back to the white platform that has the same effect, indicated this time by the difference in brightness between the top section and the side of it that faces the viewer (this is also a skillful illustration of how one light source can affect a single subject in different ways). Moving further back, we see the disgraceful red throne on which Jesus sits, also receding as indicated by the different brightness levels of the sides of it. (since these changes in lighting are subtle, it would not be considered chiaroscuro - the dramatic use of shadow in relation to light). With all of this hierarchy of depth involved, Fra Angelico still manages to keep Jesus the main focus of the scene, despite being placed relatively far in the background. Not only is he able to use mathematical rendering of space, but he is able to do so without diluting the message of the art.

sources

Photo credit: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/93/Fra_Angelico_051.jpg https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fra_Angelico_051.jpg Fra Angelico, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons Quote link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanhedrin_trial_of_Jesus Wikipedia:Text of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License