The Incredulity of St. Thomas
Caravaggio
CARAVAGGIO, 1601. OIL ON CANVAS.
Removed from context or adornment, the viewer becomes part of an intimate exchange. There are few clues as to time or place, the garb is simple, peasant robes, the background is dark and anonymous and the lighting so artificial as to almost seem more real than reality itself. This was the genius of Caravaggio, in this, one of the most important works of the Baroque: an ability to, as he so often did, take religious stories out of antiquity and bring them fiercely into the contemporary world that even five hundred years later they feel modern. Jesus is bathed in light that makes him emerge from the oil and seem almost real as his disciples gather round. Thomas, who had doubted his faith and Christ’s return, proves his finger into the open wound in Christ’s side. It is a tangible display of flesh, and confirmation that the son of God is both man and divine. Yet, this proof materialises in the medium of the painting as well of the subject. Christ as an eternal figure, always relevant, always human, is exemplified in the rich chiaroscuro of Caravaggios brushstrokes - as Thomas’s doubting was allayed by direct contact with flesh, so too is ours by being allowed entry into this scene that feels so tangible.