Baptism of Christ
Paolo Veronese
PAOLO VERONESE, c.1580. OIL ON CANVAS.
At his workshop in Venice, Veronese and a large team of apprentice artists made variation after variation of this scene. Details change, figures are added and removed and small adjustments in the compositional structure are varied. The mood too changes across the versions. Some are bright and reverent, marking the occasion as Christ fulfilling his position and starting his journey towards the kingdom of heaven, while others and darker and more ominous, as Christ gets baptised in the River Jordan he takes on, in that moment, the sins of all men shared in the water and thus condemns himself to the fate of his crucifixion. Yet for all the changes, each of which brings a new idea and dimension to the image, there is continuity too. The dove, representing the Holy Spirit, that shines powerfully above is consistent, and the poses of John and Christ, confident and trepidatious respectfully, reappear through many versions. Veronese found remarkable depth and new layers with each retelling of this scene, and in a world before reproduction, repetition brought with it revelation.