Workshop of Carlo Dolci (1616 – 1687) Ecce Homo Oil on canvas

Workshop of Carlo Dolci (1616 – 1687)
Ecce Homo
Oil on canvas, 28 x 24 cm – Frame 56,5 x 52
Ebonized frame with carved mouldings

The work presented here, due to its size and subject matter, was probably intended for a private place of devotion, for contemplation and prayer. It depicts Christ as Ecce Homo, half-length, with a crown of thorns, a red cloak on his shoulders and a cane, a precise reference to the Gospel passage of Matthew (27, 27-31). The face is suffering, the gaze lowered, the mouth half-open and the forehead marked by visible drops of blood. The delicate light and pronounced chiaroscuro highlight the soft features of the face and the brightness of the complexion, exalting the devotional character of the image. Given its interesting quality, the painting can be attributed to a painter from the narrow Florentine workshop of Carlo Dolci (1616-1687). The theme was very dear to the master who treated it in numerous paintings, as demonstrated by the Florentine examples in Palazzo Pitti (1646, initially owned by Cardinal Carlo de' Medici; and a workshop work), the one in Pommersfelden and the one in a private collection in Modena. The closest reference to be indicated for the canvas in question is that of the Ecce Homo today in the collection of Palazzo Corsini in Rome, a work dated to the early 70s, also on the basis of the stylistic comparison with the Magdalene in the English royal collections, signed and dated 1670.
The theme of Ecce Homo (from the Latin “Behold the man”) refers to the moment when Christ, after the flagellation, is shown to the people by Pontius Pilate with the words “Ecce Homo” (John 19,5:XNUMX). It is a highly devotional representation, conceived to invite the faithful to meditate on the suffering of Christ. The crown of thorns, the blood and the red cloak symbolize the sacrifice and spiritual kingship of Jesus. The Ecce Homo is a subject that arouses deep pity in observers, especially if, as in this case, the painter has deliberately highlighted the signs of the Passion, such as the rivulets of blood caused by the crown of thorns and clotted on the forehead. During the Counter-Reformation, numerous works with this pietistic subject were created, and in Florence, in particular, painters such as Cigoli and Passignano specialized in this genre; this iconographic tradition was not lost over time, as demonstrated by the different versions created by Dolci.