Caravaggio's Drama: Art, Theater, and Religion During Italy's
CARAVAGGIO’S DRAMA: ART, THEATER, AND RELIGION DURING ITALY’S “SPANISH AGE” by Kathy Johnston-Keane B.S. Art Education, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, 1984 M.A. Art History, University of Pittsburgh, 2003 Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Arts and Sciences in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Pittsburgh 2010 UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH ARTS AND SCIENCES This dissertation was presented by Kathy Johnston-Keane It was defended on March 19, 2010 and approved by David G. Wilkins, Professor Emeritus, Dept. of the History of Art and Architecture Kathleen Christian, Assistant Professor, Dept. of the History of Art and Architecture H. Anne Weis, Associate Professor, Dept. of the History of Art and Architecture Francesca Savioa, Associate Professor, Dept. of French and Italian Languages and Literature Attilio Favorini, Professor, Dept. Theatre Arts Dissertation Advisor: Ann Sutherland Harris, Professor, Dept. of the History of Art and Architecture ii Copyright © by Kathy Johnston-Keane 2010 iii CARAVAGGIO’S DRAMA: ART, THEATER AND RELIGION DURING ITALY’S “SPANISH AGE” Kathy Johnston-Keane, PhD University of Pittsburgh, 2010 Scholars often describe Caravaggio’s paintings as inspired by scenes from quotidian life. A few see his work as influenced by popular dramas such as the commedia dell’arte. While one might think these are conflicting explanations, close examination shows that a wide variety of popular dramatic forms was as much part of daily life as daily life was part of popular drama. Caravaggio’s “theatricality” is the careful depiction of quotidian life, expressed through the familiar language of popular dramatic forms, a sort of “visual vernacular” known to all classes.
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