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VI
Guglielmo della Porta Porlezza circa 1515 – Rome 1577
The Cruci xion
Between 1570 and 1575
Gilt-bronze 41 5 x 28 cm In this highly re re ned and densely composed relief della Porta addressed the subject of Christ’s Cruci xion
with great vigour and compositional innovation Here a a a a a three-dimensional Christ is is placed above the the very shallow relief-modelling of the the city and and landscape and a a a a a somewhat higher relief for the the rendering of the the attendant gures at the the base of the the cross These gures are beautifully treated with draperies that ebb
and ow in a a a a a a a similar way to the personages’ actual movements and gestures Furthermore in a a a compositional twist Christ is is is represented anked not by the the the twin crosses of the the the Good and the the the Bad Thief but by two groups of naked contorted adult human gures representing the the human souls striving to reach the the Saviour It is is a a a a a a a a a a a a sign of della Porta’s skill as as a a a a a a a a a a a a narrator and as as an an artist that - despite all of of these details - the the the scene is easily legible with the the the trio of of participants - - Jesus Mary and John - - duly emphasised by the degree of of relief Della Porta managed with the consummate artistry of of a a a a a a a lifetime to to weave all these disparate elements into a a a a a a a harmonious and homogeneous whole Acquired by a a private collector