Aristotle (Ribera painting)
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''Aristotle'' is a 1637
oil painting Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments with a medium of drying oil as the binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on wood panel or canvas for several centuries, spreading from Europe to the rest ...
by
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
artist
Jusepe de Ribera Jusepe de Ribera (1591 – 1652) was a painter and printmaker, who along with Francisco de Zurbarán, Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, and the singular Diego Velázquez, are regarded as the major artists of Spanish Baroque painting. Referrin ...
, located in the
Indianapolis Museum of Art The Indianapolis Museum of Art (IMA) is an encyclopedic art museum located at Newfields, a campus that also houses Lilly House, The Virginia B. Fairbanks Art & Nature Park: 100 Acres, the Gardens at Newfields, the Beer Garden, and more. It ...
, which is in
Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...
,
Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th ...
. It is part of a series of six portraits of ancient philosophers commissioned by the
Prince of Liechtenstein The prince regnant of Liechtenstein (german: Fürst von und zu Liechtenstein) is the monarch and head of state of Liechtenstein.Principality of Liechtenstein Family - Die fürstliche Familie (in German) The Liechtenstein family, after which t ...
in 1636.


Description

Aristotle Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of ...
is here portrayed as a beggar-philosopher, a popular conceit in the seventeenth century. His asceticism is well in keeping with Spanish Catholicism, and is a hallmark of the saints Ribera also painted. He is surrounded by light reminiscent of
Caravaggio Michelangelo Merisi (Michele Angelo Merigi or Amerighi) da Caravaggio, known as simply Caravaggio (, , ; 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. During the final four years of h ...
, with whom Ribera is often associated. That, and his direct, naturalistic style (also courtesy of Caravaggio) make this a powerful image of a philosopher and his profound contemplations. Aristotle is painted in a very tactile manner, with deep creases in his worn face and hands. Ribera proudly signed the painting across the papers in Aristotle's hand, appending "español" to his name to assert his nationality.


Historical information

When
Karl Eusebius, Prince of Liechtenstein Karl Eusebius (11 April 1611 – 5 April 1684) was the Prince of Liechtenstein. He inherited this title in 1627 from his father Karl I. He was 16 and thus considered underage, and his uncles Prince Gundakar and Maximillian acted as regents ...
originally commissioned this series in May 1636, the request was for a full dozen paintings. However, only the first six were ever delivered. These were listed in a 1767 inventory as Aristotle,
Plato Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...
, Crates,
Anaxagoras Anaxagoras (; grc-gre, Ἀναξαγόρας, ''Anaxagóras'', "lord of the assembly";  500 –  428 BC) was a Pre-Socratic Greek philosopher. Born in Clazomenae at a time when Asia Minor was under the control of the Persian Empire, ...
,
Protagoras Protagoras (; el, Πρωταγόρας; )Guthrie, p. 262–263. was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher and rhetorical theorist. He is numbered as one of the sophists by Plato. In his dialogue '' Protagoras'', Plato credits him with inventing t ...
, and
Diogenes Diogenes ( ; grc, Διογένης, Diogénēs ), also known as Diogenes the Cynic (, ) or Diogenes of Sinope, was a Greek philosopher and one of the founders of Cynicism (philosophy). He was born in Sinope, an Ionian colony on the Black Sea ...
. The set was sold and scattered in 1957, although briefly reunited by the
Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...
in 1992 for a Ribera exhibition. The identification of this particular image has been somewhat problematic over the years. Although the 1767 inventory was clear enough, only Diogenes, Anaxagoras, and Crates are identified by inscriptions on the paintings. The current consensus is that the doctor's robe and scholar's skullcap mean this image must be Aristotle. However, for years, the IMA identified the subject as
Archimedes Archimedes of Syracuse (;; ) was a Greek mathematician, physicist, engineer, astronomer, and inventor from the ancient city of Syracuse in Sicily. Although few details of his life are known, he is regarded as one of the leading scientis ...
due to the geometric drawings in his hand, although that particular philosopher was not mentioned in the inventory.


Location history

From 1637 until 1957, the Princes of Lichtenstein retained possession of the painting. Then it was purchased by Dr. G.H.A. Clowes, who generously lent it to the IMA. The IMA officially acquired ''Aristotle'' in 2000, courtesy of the Clowes family, and gave it the accession number 2000.345. It hangs in the Clowes Pavilion with many other donations from that family.


See also

*
Caravaggisti The Caravaggisti (or the "Caravagesques") were stylistic followers of the late 16th-century Italian Baroque painter Caravaggio. His influence on the new Baroque style that eventually emerged from Mannerism was profound. Caravaggio never establish ...


References


External links


IMA pageLACMA's Philosopher
{{IMAart 1637 paintings Paintings in the Indianapolis Museum of Art Works about Aristotle Paintings by Jusepe de Ribera Books in art