Seek expert answers and analyze Caravaggio's artistic characteristics and influence with examples.

From the end of 16 to the beginning of 17, realism was the opposite of stylism and academic art, Caravaggio was the most important representative of this period, and he pushed realistic art to a new stage, even affecting the whole of Europe. Caravaggio's art is full of distinct democratic thoughts. This is related to the turbulent social environment in Italy at that time. Although Caravaggio is a long-forgotten figure, he only attracted the attention of art historians at the beginning of this century. But his art not only shows people the diversity and struggle of Italian art in the17th century, but also shows his unique artistic charm, which plays an important role in later artists, including Rembrandt and Velazquez.

Michelangelo da Caravaggio (1573- 16 10) was born in Caravaggio and died in Kohler, Huel. His original name was Michelangelo Meris, and he was named after his birthplace. His father is an architect. 1 1 moved to Milan and began to learn painting. 1590- 1592 years old came to Rome from Milan, and later went to Naples, Sicily and Malta. He painted some genre paintings and still life paintings in Rome, and the works of Italian Renaissance masters played an important role in his art. He was a revolutionary painter, and at first he insisted on realism. A series of painting styles have established his characteristics, and those paintings are all young people with strange clothes and strong decadent colors. Later, his style changed greatly, and his high moral consciousness and religious paintings replaced the previous themes. He takes religious themes as the form, but the content is not the virgin and saint worshipped and praised by western artists, but a countryman with deep wrinkles, rags and dirty feet. In psychological realism, he also tried to directly enter the scene described in the Bible without modification.

Caravaggio's works emphasize the human body. The people in the painting are almost as big as real people, and they are usually placed in front of the painting. It seems that the dramatic gesture of retreating forward can transcend the picture. The greatest feature of Caravaggio's art is that he faithfully depicts nature whether people think it is beautiful or not, so people call him a "naturalist" painter. Even in paintings with religious themes, he tried his best to make the characters in ancient scriptures look more real and tangible, and even the light and shade methods he used helped to achieve this goal. His light didn't make his body look beautiful and soft, but it was so stubborn and faithful that it highlighted the whole strange scene.

The Woman soothsayer (Figure 95) is Caravaggio's early oil painting. This painting shows a custom scene. Gypsy women who read palms are lower-class people from the streets, without any pod and idealization. The image of the young man who is reading palm is also drawn directly from the image of a friend of the painter. Caravaggio's bold exploration of life will naturally arouse some conservatives' dissatisfaction. Some people criticized his artistic description as "a rough natural person", lacking aesthetic feeling and idealization. However, this is the real value of his art. He is opening up a new era for realistic art. In his life, from life to art, he is a rebel and innovator.

Calling the Apostle Matthew (Figure 96) is an altar painting made by Caravaggio for the church of Luigi de Piero Della Francesca in Rome. On the screen, there are two figures of equal size. Matthew is completely a farmer's image, as if he were writing hard. Because this figure is very vulgar and natural, it has caused strong dissatisfaction among subscribers. The most prominent thing in the picture is Matthew's two big feet facing the audience. Bellori, an academic theorist who worked for the government at that time, said, "Matthew's image is neither noble nor holy. Without style, this man sat there with his thighs pressing his calves, especially his clumsy feet, which attracted the audience. " But Caravaggio's understanding of religious painting is that vagrants, farmers and fishermen should be introduced into sacred churches. This spirit was undoubtedly progressive at that time. Caravaggio's painting style was ridiculed and opposed by the "official" academic school, but he remained the same and did not flinch from ridicule and attack. Caravaggio's realistic kung fu is solid, and the human body in his paintings is raised like a relief, which is strong and powerful. Moreover, he also used a strong contrast between light and shade. Highlighting the main part of the picture with light is the so-called "dark painting style", which was inherited and developed by Rembrandt and Velazquez.

Rest in Peace on the Road to Egypt (Figure 97) is Caravaggio's masterpiece. Renaissance is an era when human beings are full of ideals about reality, and17th century is an era when ideals began to be shattered and people began to doubt and criticize, which is reflected in Caravaggio's artistic works. This painting, based on the Bible, depicts the Virgin Mary and Yue Se fleeing to Egypt with the newly born Christ to escape the slaughter of Herod the Jew. The style of this painting is very simple, with the quietness and softness of Caravaggio's early works. The San Jose in the painting looks like an ordinary laborer, weather-beaten and wrinkled on his forehead. Caravaggio is good at integrating this critical spirit into his works. Dare to doubt is taken for granted in the Bible. Instead of beautifying the characters in the painting, it uses the images of lower-class characters in real life to express saints and the Virgin Mary. Really one of the pioneers of realistic painting. He abandoned some "lofty style", decorative factors and idealization in painting, and declared the arrival of realism with his clear and frank "rough style painting".

The Emu's Dinner (Figure 98) also reflects Caravaggio's realistic style. The characters in the painting seem to come directly from life, dressed simply, and their expressions are quite interesting, especially the man on the left front is almost obscene and shabby, which is tantamount to a farmer who has lived in the lower class for a long time. The picture is shrouded in a peaceful and tranquil earthy tones. Although it depicts a dinner party, it seems to emphasize a kind of freedom of speech similar to the gathering of civilians. Caravaggio has extraordinary realistic ability. The bread, turkey and fruit enjoyed for dinner are all on the paper, especially the crystal green grapes, which are more vivid and attractive. Another feature of this painting is Caravaggio's strong contrast between light and shade, which creates a poetic atmosphere and makes the characters in the painting less vulgar and more real and simple. Caravaggio's artistic style is also a model pursued by later generations, including modern artists.

The Victory of Cupid (written in 1598) is Caravaggio's early work, and the figure of Cupid in the picture is extremely real. The form is natural and vivid, very fresh and moving, and the picture is full of a sense of intimacy close to life. Caravaggio tried his best to highlight the characters in the painting, especially the use of light and shade, which added a lot of color to the picture. Some people call Caravaggio's paintings "rough natural people" and say that there is no idealization of beauty. But this is also the uniqueness of Caravaggio's art. He can't get along with others in life, because his position is not enough, he is often attacked and ridiculed, and he rises up and resists. This kind of life situation also created his arrogant and uninhibited realistic style. His life is a painful one. 365,438+0 years old died. However, he is a great painter and will remain in the history of art forever.

Burying Christ (Figure 99) is one of Caravaggio's works with baroque style, which emphasizes movement and exaggerates characters (such as women with their hands behind their backs). The figures in the painting are well-structured, especially the naked body of Jesus and the legs of the old man in front, which are plump and powerful. In addition, the six people in the painting are closely concentrated in the center of the painting, which has a sculptural sense of integrity. The Caravaggio style of this painting is the bright light and dark background of the characters. Karl Marx was the first painter to explore the language of light and shadow.

Ascension of the Virgin Mary (figure 100) is an altar painting painted by Caravaggio from 1605 to 1606, which was made for the church of Santa Maria de la Scala. In this painting, the dead virgin Mary is arranged in the center of the picture, and the image is real and vivid. Her hair was unkempt and her face was haggard, as if she were extremely tired. She slept in a shabby farmhouse bed, and her bare feet were particularly conspicuous. Magdalena next to the Virgin Mary is a typical Italian peasant girl, sitting sadly on a clumsy Xiao Mu stool. Here, the death of the Virgin Mary is like the death of an ordinary peasant woman, without any imagination or religious flavor. The virgin is as simple as life itself. The only slightly gorgeous curtain on the screen was painted at the request of the subscriber. In Italy at the beginning of the17th century, it is rare to see such paintings directly depicting poor life. It shows the author's deep sympathy for the lower classes, and also reflects his simple materialistic aesthetic thought. The contrast between light and shade in this painting is not as strong as that in the last one, but the characters and background are shrouded in soft natural light, which further enhances the realism of the picture. It is precisely because of this obvious innovative spirit that this painting has been attacked and vilified more than other works, and even the owner who ordered it refused to accept it. On the other hand, Rubens highly praised the painting and persuaded the Duke of Mandua to buy it so that this great work could be preserved.