Annibale Carracci - Pietà with Saints Francis and Mary Magdalen

• Title: Pietà with Saints Francis and Mary Magdalen
• Artist: Annibale Carracci (1560-1609)
• Date: c.1602-07
• Medium: Oil on canvas
• Dimensions: 277 x 186 cm

Arcimboldo was court portraitist to three Holy Roman Emperors starting from 1562- first Ferdinand I in Vienna, then to Maximilian II and his son Rudolf II in Prague. In the painting “Vertumnus”, Arcimboldo represents Rudolf II as Vertumnus, the Roman god of seasons. He assembles fruits, vegetables, cereals and flowers from all seasons to create a portrait of Rudolf II. Look for pears, apples, cherries, white and black grapes, olives, flowers, wheat, artichokes, onions, peas, cabbage, pumpkins, onions... At the end of the Thirty Years War in 1648 the Swedish forces invaded part of Prague and looted the castle, particularly the reputed art collection. “Vertumnus” was taken to Sweden where it still is. Today, Arcimboldo is seen as a precursor to Surrealism.