Holy Family with Saints 

Curator: This work is generally attributed to Peter Paul Rubens, it's usually called "Holy Family with Saints" and rendered with oil paint with an underpainting. Look at that dramatic lighting! Editor: Oh, my goodness. The scene's overwhelming. Is it supposed to feel this chaotic, even a little... unsettling? Like too many people squeezed into one holy family photo? Curator: Well, it is Baroque, which aims for heightened emotion and drama. Note the dynamism in the poses. Rubens orchestrates these figures, each saint, angel, and member of the Holy Family, creating a sort of theatrical display of reverence. It suggests the Counter-Reformation's emphasis on religious spectacle. Editor: Spectacle is definitely the word. I’m struck by the very fleshy quality of everyone, like the texture of ripe fruit. And those intense, almost pleading eyes. Even the cherubs seem stressed. It feels a world away from, say, a more serene Renaissance depiction. Curator: Precisely. The composition isn’t as strictly linear. Rubens piles figures upon figures, all united through gestures and intense gazes and that strong use of light. There's a very deliberate effort here to break away from some of the formal constraints of earlier religious painting. Look at Saint Sebastian at the left trampling on the defeated devil; it is very staged but, you can almost imagine feeling threatened if you believed in all that, though right? Editor: Oh absolutely, it's meant to evoke emotion and wonder, and even a bit of fear. The artist seems intent on capturing the vitality and immediate experience of faith, rather than just its serene, timeless ideal. Still I'm left with a somewhat confusing sense of overwhelming piety tinged with drama. Curator: I agree; it's quite the dense piece and a unique take on how we think of Baroque style, a nice chance to pause and reflect what a work like this offers for our present historical moment, dont you think?