Portrait of Carthusian. Portrait of a Carthusian is a painting in oils on oak panel by the Early Netherlandish painter Petrus Christus in 1446.
The work is part of the Jules Bache Collection housed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. It is regarded as a masterpiece of Early Netherlandish painting and, because of the fly painted towards the bottom of the painting, a prominent, early example of trompe-l'oeil.
Portrait of a Carthusian depicts a three-quarter portrait of anonymous Carthusian monk captured in mid-turn, gazing directly at the viewer. Because the monk's body is turned to his left, he must look over his right shoulder to gaze at the viewer, creating a somewhat cumbersome diagonal pose.
Petrus Christus balances this out by shifting the axis of the monk's face to the right, placing him just off center. By further modeling the monk's right shoulder more than his left shoulder, Christus draws one side of the body closer to the viewer, adding more depth to the work.
The proportions of the monk's face have also been exaggerated; the nose and eyes having been purposefully elongated. The overall effect is something of an exaggerated silhouette, a compositional technique not often found in Early Netherlandish painting. The lighting scheme employed by Petrus Christus is also noteworthy. The Monk is bathed in intense light, setting his figure dramatically against the space that he occupi
The work is part of the Jules Bache Collection housed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. It is regarded as a masterpiece of Early Netherlandish painting and, because of the fly painted towards the bottom of the painting, a prominent, early example of trompe-l'oeil.
Portrait of a Carthusian depicts a three-quarter portrait of anonymous Carthusian monk captured in mid-turn, gazing directly at the viewer. Because the monk's body is turned to his left, he must look over his right shoulder to gaze at the viewer, creating a somewhat cumbersome diagonal pose.
Petrus Christus balances this out by shifting the axis of the monk's face to the right, placing him just off center. By further modeling the monk's right shoulder more than his left shoulder, Christus draws one side of the body closer to the viewer, adding more depth to the work.
The proportions of the monk's face have also been exaggerated; the nose and eyes having been purposefully elongated. The overall effect is something of an exaggerated silhouette, a compositional technique not often found in Early Netherlandish painting. The lighting scheme employed by Petrus Christus is also noteworthy. The Monk is bathed in intense light, setting his figure dramatically against the space that he occupi
Wikipedia ...