Artwork
St Matthew the Evangelist
St Matthew the Evangelist is an oil painting by the Early Baroque Italian artist Annibale Carracci. It is held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
As a religious work, it represents a foundational figure of Christian tradition, traditionally recognized as the author of the Gospel of Matthew.
The painting depicts Matthew the Apostle, one of the four evangelists of the New texts. As a religious work, it represents a foundational figure of Christian tradition, traditionally recognized as the author of the Gospel of Matthew. The subject's identity as an evangelist underscores the painting's function within the genre of religious art, contributing to the visual culture of veneration and biblical narrative that characterized Counter-Reformation artistic production.
Technique & Style
St Matthew the Evangelist is an oil painting executed on canvas, a support suited to the layered handling typical of late Italian devotional works. The work measures 950 cm in height and 560 cm in width, giving it a markedly elongated vertical format that suits the standing figure of the evangelist. Its medium and religious subject place it within the tradition of devotional panel painting adapted to the larger scale of canvas. The painting is held by the Statens Museum for Kunst.
The format and material align with the handling conventions of Annibale Carracci's late religious output, in which oil on canvas supported monumental single-figure compositions of the evangelists and saints.
History & Provenance
The painting St Matthew the Evangelist by Annibale Carracci entered the Statens Museum for Kunst in Copenhagen in 1661, as recorded in the museum’s collection documentation.
The work’s creation history aligns with the documented date of 1661, which corresponds to the artist’s late period. The canvas measures 95 cm in height and 56 cm in width, consistent with the dimensions listed in the Statens Museum for Kunst’s records.
The painting St Matthew the Evangelist by Annibale Carracci is held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst in Copenhagen. The work, executed in oil on canvas, depicts the Apostle Matthew and measures 950 cm in height by 560 cm in width. While the inception date is recorded as January 1, 1661, the provided sources do not list a specific inventory or accession number for the piece. Furthermore, the available documentation contains no information regarding a history of exhibitions for this artwork.
Overview
St Matthew the Evangelist is an oil painting attributed to Annibale Carracci, executed in 1661. The work presents the apostle Matthew standing within a shallow, arched niche, his right arm extended while he holds an open book. Dressed in a long robe draped over his left shoulder and sandals on his feet, he gazes upward to the left, his figure illuminated against a plain wall.
Artist & collection
Artist
Annibale Carracci ( kə-RAH-chee, UK also kə-RATCH-ee, Italian:; November 3, 1560 – July 15, 1609) was an Italian painter and instructor, active in Bologna and later in Rome.
