The Stoning of Saint Stephen
Encyclopedia
The Stoning of Saint Stephen is the first painting by Dutch artist Rembrandt, painted in 1625 at the age of 19. It is currently kept in the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Lyon
.
This work is inspired by the martyrdom of Saint Stephen
which is recounted in Acts
7. This young deacon in the Christian community of Jerusalem was sentenced to death by stoning under the leadership of Saul of Tarsus, before he was converted to Christianity and became the apostle Paul. The painting was influenced by the art of Caravaggio
and Adam Elsheimer
. It represents the moment when Stephen was stoned outside the city by his many tormentors (about twenty characters), and he utters his last words to Christ as the light around him shows that the heavens are open.
The painting is divided into two distinct zones with a diagonal creating an effect of chiaroscuro
: on the left, a man on horseback (probably Saul) is in the shadow, and on the right, Stephen and his persecutors are in the light. Some inaccuracies in the drawing can be seen. The character behind Stephen seems to be a self-portrait done into a wider composition, as Spanish painter Diego Velázquez
did in Las Meninas
. John Durham suggests that Rembrandt "presents himself as a somewhat alarmed presence, a participant who may be having second thoughts about what was taking place."
Musée des beaux-arts de Lyon
The Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon is a municipal museum of fine arts in the French city of Lyon. It is housed near place des Terreaux in a former Benedictine convent of the 17th and 18th centuries. It was restored between 1988 and 1998, and despite these important restoration works it remained open...
.
This work is inspired by the martyrdom of Saint Stephen
Saint Stephen
Saint Stephen The Protomartyr , the protomartyr of Christianity, is venerated as a saint in the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Orthodox Churches....
which is recounted in Acts
ACTS
Acts or ACTS may refer to:Christianity* Acts of the Apostles , a genre of early Christian literature* Acts of the Apostles, the fifth book in the Bible's New Testament...
7. This young deacon in the Christian community of Jerusalem was sentenced to death by stoning under the leadership of Saul of Tarsus, before he was converted to Christianity and became the apostle Paul. The painting was influenced by the art of Caravaggio
Caravaggio
Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio was an Italian artist active in Rome, Naples, Malta, and Sicily between 1593 and 1610. His paintings, which combine a realistic observation of the human state, both physical and emotional, with a dramatic use of lighting, had a formative influence on the Baroque...
and Adam Elsheimer
Adam Elsheimer
Adam Elsheimer was a German artist working in Rome who died at only thirty-two, but was very influential in the early 17th century. His relatively few paintings were small scale, nearly all painted on copper plates, of the type often known as cabinet paintings. They include a variety of light...
. It represents the moment when Stephen was stoned outside the city by his many tormentors (about twenty characters), and he utters his last words to Christ as the light around him shows that the heavens are open.
The painting is divided into two distinct zones with a diagonal creating an effect of chiaroscuro
Chiaroscuro
Chiaroscuro in art is "an Italian term which literally means 'light-dark'. In paintings the description refers to clear tonal contrasts which are often used to suggest the volume and modelling of the subjects depicted"....
: on the left, a man on horseback (probably Saul) is in the shadow, and on the right, Stephen and his persecutors are in the light. Some inaccuracies in the drawing can be seen. The character behind Stephen seems to be a self-portrait done into a wider composition, as Spanish painter Diego Velázquez
Diego Velázquez
Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez was a Spanish painter who was the leading artist in the court of King Philip IV. He was an individualistic artist of the contemporary Baroque period, important as a portrait artist...
did in Las Meninas
Las Meninas
Las Meninas is a 1656 painting by Diego Velázquez, the leading artist of the Spanish Golden Age, in the Museo del Prado in Madrid. The work's complex and enigmatic composition raises questions about reality and illusion, and creates an uncertain relationship between the viewer and the figures...
. John Durham suggests that Rembrandt "presents himself as a somewhat alarmed presence, a participant who may be having second thoughts about what was taking place."