The Agony in the Garden c. 1700

Editor: Here we have Angelo de Rossi's bronze sculpture, "The Agony in the Garden", dating from around 1700. The circular composition is incredibly dynamic, but there is a tension between movement and a stillness suggested by the somber narrative. How do you approach an artwork so laden with religious meaning? Curator: Stripping away, if we can, the pre-existing narrative, let's consider the object itself. The eye is immediately drawn to the high relief, wouldn't you agree? See how the figures in the foreground possess such robust volume, which diminishes markedly towards the background, thus creating a calculated, yet artificial sense of depth within the tondo. Editor: Yes, that is evident. So, you see the diminishment as an artistic technique, used to drive the composition, as opposed to conveying thematic material? Curator: Precisely. Notice how the angel's drapery swirls about, framing Christ’s figure while also echoing the cloud formations above. De Rossi manipulates the bronze's materiality to evoke both weight and ethereal lightness simultaneously. Editor: That is well observed; I would not have noticed the visual parallel in the clouds and drapery. Can you say more about the manipulation of the bronze? Curator: Certainly. Consider how the artist's deliberate choices in the level of the relief amplify emotional resonance. Are we to view this as a successful merging of form and concept, or as a divergence? Editor: I am struck by how the manipulation of form is so clearly the principal mode of meaning. Thanks, that gives me so much to think about regarding how form dictates content, rather than the other way around! Curator: An important distinction to make, and one I hope our listeners will contemplate, too.