Our Lady of All Saints, a masterpiece by Battistello
Grandiose altarpiece by Caravaggio's disciple recounts a Paradise of great humanity
Where
Where is Giovan Battista Caracciolo's masterpiece?
Like so many works of art, the Madonna of All Saints-perhaps the absolute masterpiece of Giovan Battista Caracciolo, known as Battistello (Naples 1578-1635)-has had many vicissitudes: years or centuries of oblivion, rolled up in a warehouse, stolen and found again, then finally restored in 2014, temporarily placed in another church, displayed in a major exhibition in Naples, and today finally home again, on the high altar of the Chiesa Matrice in Stilo. Another feather in the cap of this extraordinary Locride town.
The Vision of Paradise
In the center of the huge canvas (4.15 x 3 meters) is the Virgin Mary holding the Blessing Child Jesus. Mary is surrounded by a veritable crowd of saints, in a dense web of gazes and movements, so realistic that we almost seem to hear the murmur of their voices and prayers. The interplay of glances, the wave of gestures, all rise toward Her, oasis of peace and listening and "our advocate" before God. This is how Battistello imagines his Paradise. It is 1618.
Reading the painting
The composition is rigorous: at the top is the "Triumphant Church," with Our Lady and Child in the center surrounded by angels; at the bottom is the "Militant Church," with the apostles Peter and Paul in the center, as the supporting pillars of the Church. Restoration of the canvas has revealed Caravaggesque influences, the warm, grazing light illuminating faces, arms and hands and enhancing the ochres and reds of the robes. And here these saints appear to us in all their humanity and physicality: no golden haloes, but men acting in the world and enacting the word of God.
Who are the Saints in Battistello's Paradise.
To the left of the Virgin: St. Anne, St. Francis of Paola, St. Francis of Assisi, and St. John the Baptist; to her right, St. Joseph and the deacon saints Stephen and Lawrence. In the lower register, to the left of Peter and Paul are the four Evangelists and to the right the Doctors of the Church. Behind them, other figures emerge from the shadows: the apostles, the virgins and, to the left, Mary Magdalene and Martha, symbols of the contemplative and active lives.
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The Map thanks:
PNRR a titolarità del Ministero della Cultura (MiC) M1C3 – 2.1 “Attrattività dei borghi” – Linea B – “Borghi in piazza - Spirito d’Oriente in Occidente” – Int. 2 - Digitalizzazione del territorio – CUP F49I22000220006 – CIG B693A24037
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