Boy with a Basket of Fruit Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (1571-1610)
Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio – Boy with a Basket of Fruit
Edit attribution
Download full size: 4848×4956 px (5,5 Mb)
Painter: Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio
Location: Borghese gallery, Rome (Galleria Borghese).
Album navigation:
Michelangelo Caravaggio was an artist with Italian roots who was educated in Milan. His famous painting, A Young Man with a Basket of Fruit, is his earliest work. He painted it in 1593. It is interesting that Caravaggio liked to depict both everyday life of people and biblical events. "Young man with a basket of fruit" is a depiction of ordinary life. On a canvas measuring 70 by 67 centimeters, the artist depicted a portrait of a young man holding a basket of ripe, fresh fruit.
ArtClub
Best Contemporary Atists
Description of Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio’s painting A Young Man with a Basket of Fruit
Michelangelo Caravaggio was an artist with Italian roots who was educated in Milan. His famous painting, A Young Man with a Basket of Fruit, is his earliest work.
He painted it in 1593. It is interesting that Caravaggio liked to depict both everyday life of people and biblical events. "Young man with a basket of fruit" is a depiction of ordinary life.
On a canvas measuring 70 by 67 centimeters, the artist depicted a portrait of a young man holding a basket of ripe, fresh fruit. The boy has dark, thick, curly hair. The young man’s pose is rather loose, he is hunched over a bit, his shoulder bare. He looks at us with pride. His mouth is slightly open.
The artist spent a lot of time on the fruit basket. Michelangelo Caravaggio placed bunches of grapes, red-green apples, ripe figs, peaches and other fruits in the wicker brown basket.
The brightest fruits are apples, and the rest of the fruits the artist depicted in neutral tones so that everything looks harmonious. Had Caravaggio taken a lot of bright colors, our attention would have gone only to the fruit, then we would have forgotten about the main character.
There is no reliable information as to who this young man was. Many believe that Caravaggio simply asked the first person he met to pose. In general, Michelangelo Caravaggio was famous for depicting the most ordinary people in his paintings.
The artist paid a lot of attention to color and light. In this picture, it is immediately clear that the light falls from the left side. After all, the brightest spots are the left cheek and shoulder of the young man.
On the right side of the painting, on the contrary, the shadows fall. The background of the painting is the most common gray wall. The artist purposely depicted the guy in an ordinary room, not in nature. So that the fruit doesn’t blend in with the natural environment.
COMMENTS: 4 Ответы
Эта картина прекрасное творение Караваджо. Бытовые мотивы ярко раскрываются в его произведениях. Доказательством тому может послужить данное изображение юноши. Какое чувство прекрасного запечатлелось в чистом, девственном, молодом лице... Это одна из моих любимых картин.
Я не толерантна, смотреть неприятно, но корзина вполне.
Ох не бытовые мотивы там раскрываются. Раскрывается чувственность.
К искусству? Или к чему это было сказано?
You cannot comment Why?
The boy’s gaze is directed slightly off-center, conveying an expression that is difficult to definitively interpret – it could be interpreted as thoughtful, wary, or even melancholic. His skin appears smooth and youthful, rendered with meticulous detail that captures subtle variations in tone and texture. The drapery he wears is simple, a loosely draped cloth revealing the contours of his shoulder and chest. This simplicity contrasts with the richness of the fruit basket, suggesting a deliberate juxtaposition of modesty and abundance.
The fruit itself is depicted with remarkable realism; each piece possesses its own distinct color, shape, and surface quality. The variety suggests prosperity and fertility. Grapes, peaches, plums, apples, berries – the selection appears deliberately generous. The leaves interspersed among the fruit add to the sense of natural bounty and further enhance the illusion of three-dimensionality.
Beyond a straightforward depiction of a boy with fruit, the painting hints at deeper symbolic meanings. The basket could represent sustenance, wealth, or even temptation. The youth’s expression introduces an element of ambiguity; is he proud of his offering, burdened by it, or perhaps questioning its significance? The dark background contributes to this sense of mystery, suggesting that the scene exists outside a specific narrative context, allowing for multiple interpretations.
The overall effect is one of quiet intensity and understated drama. While seemingly simple in subject matter, the painting invites contemplation on themes of abundance, youth, responsibility, and the complexities of human experience.