Man of Sorrows 1630 - 1700

Guido Reni painted this ‘Man of Sorrows’ in oil on canvas sometime in the early 17th century, a period marked by the entrenchment of the Catholic Church in Bologna. Looking at the upturned gaze and the crown of thorns, this painting evokes a sense of religious piety, but it also performs a didactic function. In post-Reformation Italy, religious images were used to assert the truth of the Catholic faith and inspire devotion in its followers. Reni’s painting is one of many images of Christ that presents the suffering of Jesus as a visual sermon, a response to the Protestant Reformation. Art historians consult theological texts, political pamphlets, and records of artistic patronage to better understand the social conditions that shaped the making and viewing of such images. The meaning of art is contingent on this wider context.