 Carlo Crivelli (Italian, c. 1430–c. 1495)
Apostle, 1470–75
Tempera and gilding on panel
Gift of the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, 1961 (2979.1)
This small panel and the one hanging nearby were
originally part of the predella—the series of paintings
depicting saints and apostles at the lower edge of a
larger scene— for an altarpiece that Carlo Crivelli
painted for a Franciscan church in central Italy. The
predella, a narrow ledge below the main image of an
altarpiece, was often composed of depictions of
individual apostles or saints, such as here. A depiction
of either the Apostle Andrew or the more obscure
Simon the Zealot (both of whom are often depicted
with crosses, symbolic of their martyrdom), The apostles subject's expressive faces, animated gestures, and crisp vestments are typical of Crivelli,
whose work is admired for its intensity and
theatricality. This particular apostle could be Andrew
or the more obscure Simon the Zealot, both of whom
are often depicted with crosses, the symbol of their
martyrdom. |