Caravaggio Michelangelo against

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against Caravaggio Michelangelo

The great artists are fighting for the love of the public
Quincentennial Michelangelo's Stay on top of the ranking of Italian artists came to an end. The fact that the place occupied by Michelangelo Caravaggio, says art historian from the University of Toronto Philip Som. He calculated the number of works (books, catalogs, and scientific articles), published on both the artists over the past 50 years, and found that Caravaggio gradually, though not in all categories, ahead of Michelangelo.

This change in taste became apparent in the second half of the 80's. However, it does not mean that Michelangelo forgotten. Judging by the number of people crowd into the Sistine Chapel, and standing in queues to the door of the gallery of the Academy of Art in Florence, to look at the "David", his popularity did not threaten.

However, it is undeniable that Philip Som has a point. "Karavadzhomaniya" as he calls it, means not only that students and art have nothing more to say about Michelangelo. It shows that the classical tradition, which relied Michelangelo, is becoming increasingly incomprehensible, and therefore seems less sincere, even many educated people. His otherworldly, muscular men, discharging the sinners in hell, or seeking to escape from the huge pieces of cold marble, are subordinated to the abstract and almost forgotten ideal of great art.

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Caravaggio, on the contrary, - the embodiment of modern anti-hero, giperrealist, whose art is available to all. His boys with matted hair and blue eyes, with full lips and buttocks look as if they had just got up from bed, and not descended from heaven. Rough, but not divine, enclosed in a dark, ambiguous space of strict geometric forms and isolated from the deep shade of light rays, the model came directly from the street.

Roman art lovers early XVII century, admiring luxurious lace late Mannerism, despised by Caravaggio for his dirty, barefoot pilgrims at the threshold of the Virgin. Nicolas Poussin, the most arrogant of all the French artists, said that Caravaggio is seeking "to destroy the painting." Caravaggio found the response from ordinary people, those who do come

 Rome barefoot, dirty pilgrim. However, he has been and senior fans. However, almost immediately after his death at the age of 38 years, from malaria in the town of Porto d'Erkole, north of Rome, in 1610, Caravaggio's paintings have been forgotten. Hundreds of years of neglect of his art and appreciated only in our days. One hundred years ago, art lovers such as Bernard Berenson, still denied him talent, while Lionello Venturi, Roger Fry and Roberto Longhi not restored, finally, his reputation protomodernista.

Som, presented results of their research at the University Art Association Conference, held in February in Chicago, his work has focused on publications, not the tourist fees and the number of visitors. But his study confirms the trend, obvious to anyone, regardless of their affiliation to the world of art. The shops in the Italian airports scarves with patterns of "Bacchus" by Caravaggio, and the head of Goliath found no less than coasters beer mugs with different parts of the body of David and cups with Adam from the Sistine Chapel ceiling.

"The only way to understand the art of the past - is to include it in our own artistic life" - wrote in 1925 Venturi. The fact that after Caravaggio, there is not pictures, no letters, no will or inventory of the property - only to police and court records - makes it an ideal spot Rorschach (Swiss psychiatrist. - Prim. Ed.) For our obsessions. He drank, chased women (and men), killed a tennis opponent's dagger in the crotch, run away from the assassins, was marred by one of the numerous enemies, and yet managed to find time for something to paint. What is not a modern hero?

In 1970, researchers announced his sex stories gay, despite the complete absence of evidence of this document. His life, of course, attracts the attention of authors of popular literature and film directors. Trade show organizers are any tweaks ("Caravaggio and Bacon, Caravaggio and Rembrandt"), to capitalize on his popularity. In the market every year there are again found "paintings by Caravaggio.

In the Quirinal Palace in Rome has opened another retrospective Caravaggio: two dozen paintings will show the public until 13 June. Ironically, the paintings hanging in a dark room with directed beams of light on them - as if his art, and so lacked theatricality. But the picture is still great and it is impossible to get tickets.

Huge queues of tourists lining up to works by Caravaggio in the church of San Luigi dei Francesi and Santa Maria del Popolo, skarmlivaya change from the pockets of vending machines that include backlighting. Maybe it's just coincidence, but I in the Basilica of Santa Maria sopra Minerva no one stopped to look at the statue of Michelangelo.

Michael Kimmelman
The New York Times
http://www.novayagazeta.ru/data/2010...imes10/14.html

[Allena]

Well, this is nothing said: visitors tuned specifically for Caravaggio, and no more on that paid no attention. It may well be the opposite