Mark D. Ruffner © 2015 |
www.gopixpic.com |
As I mentioned in Pompeii No. 47, Cardinal Farnese's gallery ceiling depicts the loves of the gods of Olympus. Above, I've circled the ceiling segment that I've chosen to add to my own mural. It's one of Annibale Carracci's best works, and a testament thereof is that most books on Carracci and the Farnese Gallery highlight this portion of the ceiling.
Annibale Carracci: The Farnese Gallery, Rome | Dempsey, Braziller |
The painting depicts Diana (also known as Artemis in Greek mythology) who was the Roman goddess of the moon and of the hunt. Much to the disappointment of the other gods, she vowed never to marry. But on one of her trips across the sky, she spotted a sleeping shepherd named Endymion and fell in love. As you can see, she is was so very careful in her attention — much to the amusement of the cherubs — that not even Endymion's dog stirred. Diana visited Endymion thereafter many times, always when he was asleep, and remembering her vow, she asked Jupiter (or Zeus) to make Endymion eternally young and eternally asleep. There are a number of alternate versions of this story.
I leave it to you to determine possible messages on love and life, which might include the moral to never say never. In any case I like Carracci's depiction and have copied it, below.
Mark D. Ruffner © 2015 |
Below is a comparison of Carracci's original and my own copy.
click to enlarge |
Gli Amori Degli Dei |
Of course Annibale was working on a much greater scale, maybe 20 times the size of my little copy.
I want to call you attention now to the interesting way he shadowed his figures. Where other artists would sometimes crosshatch, Carracci shadowed with a method that looked like fine banknote engraving. His first apprenticeship was with a goldsmith, so perhaps he developed this technique then. One would not see this looking up from floor level, and I find it quite astonishing. I would have loved to have looked over Carracci's shoulder as he worked.
click to enlarge |
But we can't just leave it there, floating in an auburn void! In my next posting, I'll be putting a frame around the painting, and the frame will come from a most appropriate source. I hope you'll join me then!
.