Peter Paul Rubens - The Elevation of the Cross

Today we return to the Flemish Baroque painter Peter Paul Rubens and his work Raising of the Cross, painted between 1610 and 1611. In this stunning work Rubens introduces Antwerp to the Baroque style and the innovations he has brought back with him from the south. Rubens had returned from eight years in Italy and the influences of his time there are evident in this painting. Michelangelo's sculptural forms, Titian's colors and Caravaggio's chiaroscuro are still fresh in Rubens' mind. Additionally, Rubens had seen Laocoön, the ancient sculpture that had recently been recovered and was displayed in the Vatican. Laocoön would serve as the model for many artists wishing to portray anguish with the human figure. We know that Rubens made multiple sketches of the work along with other classical sculptures during his time in Rome. Rubens combined these Italian influences with the lucidity of Flemish art, creating a unique expressive visual language. The Raising of the Cross, while completed early in his career, suggests the powerful realism and emotional confidence that would make his work suitable for a varied audience, including secular rulers, wealthy patrons and the Catholic Church. This particular work was commissioned as the altarpiece for the Church of Saint Walpurga in Antwerp. The altar area in the church presented Rubens with several challenges. First, the altar was quite high, 19 steps up. Additionally, the choir section of the church was unusually long. This meant that parishioners in the nave would have trouble viewing the painting. In response to the Protestant Reformation, the Catholic Church had convened the Council of Trent, which addressed several doctrinal issues, abuses within the church, and guidelines for the artwork displayed. In particular, the art was to have a didactic purpose. In other words, it was to teach the laity the theological truths of the Gospel and to encourage piety. From a practical standpoint, that means the laity had to be able to clearly see the pictures. In a church like Saint Walpurga, an altarpiece would be clearly seen by the priests as they performed the rituals before the altar, but it would not be of service to the parishioners. To solve this problem, Rubens designed an altarpiece of immense size. The central panel of the painting is 11 feet wide by 15 feet tall, and with its wings fully opened, the piece is 21 feet wide. Above the painting was another work of God the Father, and when placed in their intended locations, Christ's gaze is directed to God the Father in the painting above him. In fact, the altarpiece was so large, the door to Rubens' painted the altarpiece inside of the church, one of the few interior locations that could contain the mass of work. A large sail was used to conceal the work area from curious eyes. Baroque painters were heavily influenced by the works of Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Jesuit movement. Ignatius introduced a method of meditation that encouraged the faithful to engage their senses in meditation. This countered the movement within Reformed Protestant groups to remove art from churches due to the belief that images encouraged idolatry. In contrast, Ignatius felt all of the senses were pathways God could use to reach the heart and mind of the faithful. Rubens' style was uniquely suited to encourage this method of meditation, as the aim was to move the viewer into the work, so they were not just seeing it, but experiencing it, in much the same way we might experience a scene when viewing a movie. As we've noted in previous devotionals, Baroque artists used several devices to aid them in producing works that affected people in this way. All of these are employed here, the dramatic diagonal composition, the action of the painting pushed into the foreground, a strong use of color and light, and a heightened sense of movement. Drama and intense emotion drive the composition of the painting. This altarpiece is a triptych, a painting on three wooden panels that are hinged, allowing the painting to be closed and then opened on special occasions. The triptych was common in the Middle Ages, but was considered outdated by the time Rubens was commissioned to paint this one. Undeterred, he made some unusual changes to update the style. Normally, the side panels of a triptych contained related but independent scenes, often including the Virgin Mary, other saints, possibly the patrons who were paying for the work, but instead Rubens has chosen to continue the action of the central section onto the side panels. The continuity of the scenes is reinforced by the landscape and sky flowing onto the side panels. Now, Napoleon was an admirer of Rubens' work, and when Antwerp came under his rule, this painting, along with many others of Rubens, were removed and taken to Paris. After Napoleon's fall, the painting was returned to Antwerp. Unfortunately, the Church of St. Walpurga had been heavily damaged by war and was demolished. The altarpiece was instead taken to the Cathedral of Our Lady in Antwerp, where it remains. Inside of the cathedral, the raising of the cross is placed in the northern transept. The deposition, or the taking Christ down from the cross, is in the southern transept. There is a crucifixion on the center altarpiece, creating a movement across the entire sanctuary of the narrative of the crucifixion. As we view the painting, we have what is referred to in art as a worm's eye view. What this means is we must look up at the painting, much as a worm must look up at, well, everything, and emphasizing the fact that a worm is below us. Although the location of this painting guaranteed we would be looking up at it, many artists set up a work so that we feel we're viewing the object in the painting from below. This is meant to create a sense that what we are viewing is above us, not just situationally, but in terms of our station in life, or our moral standing. As we view this painting, let's look at the two side panels first. The one on the left, which would be Christ's right, is filled with his followers. It is significant that they are to Christ's right, that's the place of honor, and where artists traditionally place the righteous. In the top of that panel, we have the Virgin Mary and the Apostle John. From this time forward, they will consistently be pictured together, the two who loved Christ most deeply. Christ has handed his mother into John's care while he's on the cross. Additionally, the other disciples have fled, afraid to be identified as being Christ's disciples. John alone is pictured here, standing with Christ in his darkest hours. Interestingly, the rest of the followers of Christ that are depicted are women and children. There are four women forming a column and two young children. The women recoil or avert their eyes from the scene before them. The woman in pink at the bottom falls back, a look of horror on her face. Her gaze is locked on the face of Christ, directing our focus there. Her baby, who had been nursing, is so disturbed by the sights, sounds, and distress of his or her mother that they stop feeding. And can we just stop for a minute and learn something here about normalizing the practice of breastfeeding? On the panel to the right, but Christ left, we have those who are in charge of crucifixion and the two criminals who will be executed with Christ. The soldier on horseback, who is overseeing the executions, is hardened and unaffected by the scene before him. His baton reaches out, pointing us to the feet of Christ. Beyond him, we see the two criminals, one already on the ground being nailed to his cross and the other one being forced forward by a soldier, presumably to assume his position on a cross. At the top of the panel, we find the sun and moon, and we can see that a total eclipse is about to occur. Luke 23 tells us, It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon, for the sun stopped shining. Here, Reuben tells us that it is nearly time for darkness to descend. At this time, a feast day was celebrated every September 14th, called the Exaltation of the Cross. The verse that was read on this day was John 12, 35. Then Jesus told them, You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. Whoever walks in the dark does not know where they are going. Believe in the light while you have the light, so that you may become children of light. Jesus, the light of the world, will not be with them much longer. The center painting is dominated by Christ's pale body, recently nailed to the cross. There are nine executioners straining with all their might to raise the cross. We can all but hear their grunts as they try to wrestle the cross into an upright position. The cross and Christ form a receding diagonal that adds a sense of urgency and drama. One executioner in the front has a rope he is pulling forward. Another crouches on the other side of the cross, using his back to push up. A few are at the base of the cross. One has climbed above the cross to help shove. Most noticeable is the Herculean-sized man in the front who is lifting, his muscles straining. We wonder if they are going to be able to manage to get the cross up, or if it is going to come crashing back to the ground. These men and the physicality of the body of Christ all show the influence that Michelangelo has had on Rubens. The muscularity is extreme. Beyond adding to the drama of the moment, Rubens is making visual the weight of sin that Christ is taking onto himself. That weight is making it nearly impossible for nine excessively burly men to raise the cross. While we often contemplate the suffering of the scourging in the nails, we do not take into account the crushing weight of mankind's sin that Christ must bear to finish his work. Here Rubens attempts to make that weight visible. Christ's body is not the wimpy, thin body of many crucifixion paintings, but a body rippling with muscles, straining and twisting as he lifts his head to look up at God the Father. It is easy to imagine in this moment that Christ is uttering those devastating words, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Rubens chooses to emphasize Christ's body to force the viewer to recognize Christ's humanity. Here Christ is fully human and he suffers physically, just as we would, to save mankind. The dog at his feet recalls a traditional iconography of the passion that is taken from Psalm 22, sometimes referred to as the Psalm of the Suffering Servant. Psalm 22 16 says, Dogs surround me, a pack of villains encircles me, they pierce my hands and feet. Of the executioners and the soldiers, only one appears shocked and confused by the events. The soldier who is assisting in the lifting of the cross appears to be looking at Christ as if wondering who he is and what he is participating in. It is believed that Rubens modeled this soldier after himself, emphasizing that he participated in crucifying Christ. It's as if Rubens is painting the verse from John 8 that says, When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He. As we look at this soldier's face, it's as if he is realizing that Christ might indeed be the Son of God. There is a twisting, blowing oak tree behind Christ that is filling and darkening the background. This stands for the Tree of Life, and after Christ's resurrection, the cross will be called the Tree of Life, for through it mankind can find life. Rubens provides us with bold and powerful imagery and invites us to place ourselves into the midst of this painting, just like he drew himself into the painting. This is an idea that I was unfamiliar with until Kelly pointed it out. It has changed the way I look at works of art. Who would I be in this scene? This leads to larger questions like, Who am I? How do I respond in crisis? What kind of friend am I? What are the impacts of my own betrayals in life? Kelly has done a lot of videos and blog posts on famous works of art, and there are more to come. Make sure to subscribe to her YouTube channel by selecting the subscribe button below, and please give her a thumbs up since you like the video. Those small gestures help us a great deal. 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