 |
| Guercino Susannah and the Elders 1617 Prado |
It can seem as if every Italian painter who ever lived must have painted a version of Susannah and the Elders. Out of all the proliferating interpretations, Guercino's (above) is unusual for its restraint. Through sheer technical control he avoided the vulgarity that this "naughty" subject of the Biblical peepers tended to encourage in lesser artists. Susannah and the Elders was a youthful work created during Guercino's first long stay in Rome. At this stage, he stood in high favor with the ill and aging Ludovisi pope Gregory XV, whose portrait he painted (below).
 |
| Guercino Portrait of Pope Gregory XV ca. 1622-23 Getty |
 |
| Guercino St Augustine in Meditation 1636 Prado |
Another important Guercino from the Prado appears above. "The picture represents the encounter between St. Augustine, meditating on the sea shore, and a boy in the act of scooping water from the sea into a sand pit with a shell. Upon enquiry, St Augustine discovered that the boy was attempting the impossible task of emptying the sea; he interpreted the incident as a symbol of the unfathomable mystery of God."
 |
| Guercino preliminary drawing for St Augustine in Meditation ca. 1636 British Museum |
 |
| Guercino Disinterested Love ca. 1654 Prado |
 |
| Guercino Cupid 1630s drawing British Museum |
 |
| Guercino St. Lawrence dispensing alms late 1630s drawing British Museum |
 |
| Guercino Bound woman rescued at night by a youth with a sword ca. 1624-28 drawing British Museum |
 |
| Guercino Christ appearing to St. Teresa 1634 drawing British Museum |
 |
| Guercino Seated male figure ca. 1618-19 drawing Clark Art Institute |
 |
| Guercino Santa Inés 1650s drawing Prado |
 |
| Guercino Young woman with arms raised 17th century drawing British Museum |