Friday, November 5, 2010

Narrative in Art

Almost all artwork has a story to tell, and some stories are told through one intimate scene right at the climax of the story.  For example, Caravaggio told a whole story in his painting The Conversion of Saint Paul.


This painting is shown right at the moment Saint Paul finds his faith in God.  I may be a little rusty on my art history, but I believe that Saint Paul was a tax collector at this point in his life.  He was on his way to Damascus when he was kicked off of his horse and saw a blinding light where he changed his ways and became an apostle.  Enough elements of that story are shown, the blinding light, Paul falling off his horse, the look of peace on his face.  The narrative has been shown through one scene.

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