Standing Male Nude, Saint John the Evangelist with a Bishop or Abbot Saint; verso: Seated Male Nude 1522 - 1523

Curator: Parmigianino’s “Standing Male Nude, Saint John the Evangelist with a Bishop or Abbot Saint” is before us, a drawing rendered in red chalk. The sheet measures roughly 28 by 20 centimeters, housed at the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: It feels unfinished, raw. The nude figure dominates the composition, but its incompleteness lends it a vulnerable quality. What do you make of the juxtaposition of the figures? Curator: The placement of the saint figures beside the nude introduces a dynamic tension, perhaps reflecting the conflicting social mores around the male form in religious art. It challenges the viewer to reconcile the sacred and the sensual. Editor: It does seem to highlight power dynamics within religious institutions, the nude almost a symbol of the subjugated body under the gaze of religious authority. Curator: Perhaps. Parmigianino worked during a period of significant social and religious upheaval, and that undoubtedly informed his artistic choices. Editor: Seeing this through that lens truly shifts the viewing experience. Thanks! Curator: Indeed. Considering its historical context enriches our understanding considerably.