Shop art print and framed art Le Christ en croix ou le Calvaire by Antoon van Dyck

Christ on the Cross, or Calvary, was painted around 1630 by Antoine van Dyck for the high altar of the Récollets convent in Lille. This large vertical composition (400 x 251 cm), executed in oil on canvas, is now in the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Lille. The work, commissioned for the high altar of the Récollets convent in Lille, dates from Van Dyck's second period in Antwerp, between his return from Italy in 1627 and his departure for London in 1632. It was seized during the revolution and appears in the museum's inventory drawn up in 1795. Against a stormy sky, with the glint of an orange sun scaring away the other protagonists in the scene (witnesses, soldiers), the haloed Christ on the Cross bends his head towards Mary, Mary Magdalene and John at his feet. Leaning forward from behind, Mary Magdalene, dressed in yellow, kisses Christ's bloodied feet, while the Virgin, dressed in blue, holds out her hand to him and John, dressed in red, looks up at him with reddened eyes. A third dark figure can be seen at the far right of the painting (one of the Three Marys?). The three colours worn by the three mourners have a metaphorical meaning: golden yellow (eternal light), red (of the Passion) and blue (mantle of Humanity). On this summit of the "Mount of the Skull" (Golgotha), Adam's skull must be present at the foot of the cross"; it can be seen at bottom left under a thistle, symbolising the misfortune of the fall due to original sin, its thorns evoking the crown of derision worn [...]

 

This artwork is a painting from the classical period. It belongs to the baroque style.

 

« Le Christ en croix ou le Calvaire » is kept at Palais des Beaux-Arts, Lille, France.

 

Find the full description of Le Christ en croix ou le Calvaire by Antoon van Dyck on Wikipedia.