An Apostle 1468 - 1476

Curator: The gaze is certainly the first thing that strikes you, wouldn’t you agree? Editor: Absolutely, that upturned, visionary expression is really quite affecting. There’s an almost desperate yearning there. Curator: We’re looking at Carlo Crivelli’s “An Apostle,” likely created between 1468 and 1476. The artist chose tempera and oil, resulting in what strikes me as a stunning level of detail on panel. You really feel you could step right back into fifteenth-century Italy, no? Editor: Italy, yes, but let's not forget the specific cultural and socio-political context in which Crivelli was working. He was very much part of a conservative movement that, while embracing some Renaissance innovations, largely upheld a rather Gothic aesthetic. The figure almost seems to push against the decorative. Curator: The use of gold leaf definitely places it in a tradition of reverence, harking back to Byzantine iconography. This reflects something of what I perceive as continuity… it speaks to me of ancient ways of knowing. Note the specific details – his halo, and the script itself which reminds me of those times, calling to mind those long gone sacred spaces. Editor: Agreed, but this adherence to a perceived “divine order” also serves to reinforce existing social hierarchies. Consider who has access to the divine knowledge held within the text, and who is denied that access. Crivelli's works, however devotional, were often commissioned by elites, effectively performing power structures in paint. Curator: His raised finger… a symbol for the transmission of divine truth, pointing upwards, to where sacred wisdom dwells, or from whence it flows? Editor: Or pointing toward a future…or to power...one where his ideas become reality… In this setting we are not necessarily talking of divine right but…divine mandate…I am unsure, though, of how much “reality” factored into it... Curator: Even across centuries, this piece clearly sparks diverse ideas and convictions. I do like art with enduring influence! Editor: Indeed. I am taking so many social issues of this piece and its meaning. It seems so open to interpretations depending on where you come from in life. It’s quite fascinating.