Investigating Caravaggio: What Can Technical Analysis Tell us about Technique?

I am excited to finally share an update on a project that has been in the works for more than a year. In that time I have had the distinct pleasure and privilege collaborating with Dottoressa Beatrice De Ruggieri and Dottore Marco Cardinali in planning an investigation into the painting technique of Caravaggio based in large part on the technical analyses they conducted of his paintings between 2010 and 2016 (see the two volumes of “Caravaggio: Works in Rome” published by Silvana Editoriale).

In March we were granted extraordinary access to Caravaggio’s “Judith and Holofernes” in Palazzo Barberini and are presently engaged in making a couple of copies of a detail of the painting, which will in turn be analyzed and compared to the original. For more details on the scope of the project and additional photos, please see the story “Decoding Caravaggio: a Direct Examination of his Painting Technique” just published to The American University of Rome website.

TJA
May 6th, 2024
Rome

Photo by @matilde6miticaa #caravaggio