Ontwerp voor een plafondschildering met Christus in de hemel tussen heiligen 1649 - 1709

Curator: My first impression is of pure, ecstatic chaos, like looking into the sun or witnessing a hurricane. So much movement crammed into a tiny space. Editor: Indeed. What we’re seeing is “Design for a ceiling painting with Christ in Heaven among Saints,” a drawing in pen and brown ink by Giovanni Battista Gaulli, sometime between 1649 and 1709. The piece resides here at the Rijksmuseum. Curator: Ah, so this frenzy is meant to be heaven? Interesting. You know, there's a beautiful freedom in his lines, even if it does feel like he was chasing his tail a bit trying to get it all down on paper. Editor: Gaulli was a key figure in the Roman Baroque. Artists of his time grappled with creating a persuasive, overwhelming sense of the divine, directly tied to Counter-Reformation theology. They were designing what amounted to stage sets for religious experiences. Curator: Stage sets, yes! That's exactly it! There's a theatrical drama, a sort of baroque exuberance I detect, everything angled to pull you up and into it. The lines create such powerful diagonal movement. Editor: Consider that Gaulli often designed illusionistic ceiling frescoes, spectacular visions meant to dissolve the architecture of the church. This sketch seems an early study for such a work. Curator: You can feel that ambition here, the intention of making something not just seen, but felt. Looking closely, there's real skill here. I would feel intimidated painting on this scale, high above on scaffolding! Editor: He’s mapping out not just the composition but the very experience. The Baroque masters were selling salvation wholesale. They understood the psychology of devotion on a grand scale. Curator: Ultimately, regardless of the theological and historical context, it is that pure energetic impulse of the drawing, all these swirling bodies and gestures pushing and pulling. Very inspiring, actually. Editor: I’d agree. Examining Gaulli’s initial vision allows us to better grasp the mechanics of awe and persuasion at play. I do think we tend to forget just how deeply embedded political intentions were within artwork of this era.