Musings on all things Rome from Via della Mercede.
Ahhhh… Caravaggio!
The blockbuster exhibition on the divinely talented painter Caravaggio at Palazzo Barberini just wrapped. I had just been to Palazzo Barberini on my previous visit to Rome, to see a Caravaggio portrait that was being publicly exhibited for the first time. But I was happy to be back!
The “Caravaggio 2025” exhibition brought together some of his works I had never seen before, and probably will never see again. Some of these paintings had once been part of collections in Rome but are now dispersed throughout the world. Now, they were back for a grand reunion.
Demand was very high for this extraordinary reunion. We were fortunate to get tickets for late one evening. After the initial tickets had sold out, the gallery released more tickets and expanded the exhibition hours to weekend midnights. We headed over at 10 p.m. Thursday evening.
The line at 10 p.m. — but entry at Palazzo Barberini was well organized.
Some of the paintings were old friends, as Palazzo Barberini has several Caravaggios in its own collection.
Caravaggio’s Narcissus, part of the Palazzo Barberini collection
But many pieces I had never seen before. I suspected it was the same for most people there.
Saint Francis of Assisi in Ecstasy from the Wadsworth Atheneum of Art in Hartford
Close up of The Cardsharps from the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, which reportedly once hung in Palazzo Barberini.
A favorite subject of Caravaggio was Saint John the Baptist, this one from the Nelson-Atkins Museum in Kansas City (close-up at the top of this post)
Close-up of Musicians, from the NYC Metropolitan Museum of Art
Boy Peeling Fruit, on loan from King Charles
Close-up of The Flagellation of Christ, from the Museo di Capodimonte in Naples
Portrait of Fra Antonio Martelli, Pitti Palace, Florence
Close-up of The Martyrdom of Saint Ursula (his last painting), from the collection of the Intesa Sanpaolo bank
A prime benefit of this reunion of so many Caravaggio paintings was that you could see familiar faces popping up in several works. Just one example — Fillide Melandroni was a courtesan and a favorite model of the artist’s. Besides the works below, she’s also in his Judith and Holofernes.
Close-up of the painting Martha and Mary Magdalene, from the Detroit Institute of Arts
Close-up of Saint Catherine of Alexandria from the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum in Madrid
A close-up of one of Caravaggio’s favorite models, Fillide Melandroni.
This was an emotional reunion. We spotted people smiling as they encountered favorite paintings, whispering amongst themselves, often in awe. Borrowing from T.S. Eliot, in the rooms the people come and go, whispering, “ahhh… Caravaggio!”
Patrons admiring the marvel of Caravaggio’s Saint John the Baptist in the Wilderness.
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