Description
For this depiction of Peter denying that he is a follower of Jesus (seen under arrest in the background at right), Utrecht artist Hendrick ter Brugghen embraced the strong contrast of light and shadow and emotional urgency popularized by Italian painter Caravaggio. The dancing sparks of the fire illuminate the servant’s condemnatory finger and shroud the fearful saint in shadow, underlining the Dutch taste for naturalistic treatments of lighting in the 17th century.
Provenance
Reedtz-Thott collection, Guanø Castle near Næstved, Denmark, by ca. 1750 [according to letter from Baron Otto Reedtz-Thott dated July 26, 2004 in curatorial file]; Baron Kjeld Thor Tage Otto Reedtz -Thott (died 1923), 2nd Baron Guanø, Guanø Castle, Denmark by at least 1914; by decent to Baron Axel Reedtz-Thott, Guanø Castle, Denmark; sold by him to a London dealer in the late 1960’s [according to the letter from his son, Baron Otto Reedtz-Thott, cited above]. Wildenstein and Company, New York, by 1968; sold to the Art Institute in 1969.
Accession Number
30901
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
132.3 × 178 cm (51 5/8 × 69 5/8 in.); Framed: 149.2 × 194.3 × 7 cm (58 3/4 × 76 1/2 × 2 3/4 in.)
Classification
oil on canvas
Credit Line
Charles H. and Mary F. S. Worcester Collection
