To Compare Jacques-Louis David's Death of Marat with Caravaggio's Entombment - Essay Example

However, they differ in their implications and the audiences they intended to address during their time. For illustration, Caravaggio's Entombment audience encompassed Christians whereby it intended to instill the essence of Christ’s death (Wright 20). Jacques-Louis David's Death of Marat served as homage to the French revolutionary (Bietoletti 70). Death of Marat, Entombment both emanated from neoclassical and baroque periods respectively in spite of sharing similar implications regarding fallen heroes (Bietoletti 8).

This study seeks to expound how the two works compare by utilizing similar stylistic elements to convey their respective message to the audiences. Stylistic analysis Figure 1: The Death of Marat - Jacques-Louis David. Accessed on 19Th 19Th December 2012 from Figure 2: Entombment of Christ – Caravaggio. Accessed on 19Th December 2012 from < http://www.bc.edu/bc_org/avp/cas/his/CoreArt/art/resources/cvggo_entom.jpg> The significance of these two images lies with common utilization of stylistic techniques to relay their messages to the audiences.

This is regardless of the artists emanating or representing diverse artwork periods. Essentially, this is evident from how they use space in both Jacques-Louis David's Death of Marat and Caravaggio's Entombment images, which is more of baroque style (Greene 402). The artists in depicting their artworks tend to diminish the space amid the audience and the images, whereby one can feel them with hands. For instance, the Caravaggio's portrait exemplifies the tomb where the Christ is about to lie far much close to the viewer, which is apparent from the light illuminating one of its four corners.

This is also similar with the man’s foreshortened elbow that seems to protrude in the viewer’s space from its intended realm. Similarly, David utilizes the same techniques mainly exhibited by both the man’s head and the desk’s contents, though in comparison the latter seems closer to the viewer than the rest. The artists have also utilized light and dark shades in their images, though in this context their implications are diverse. Caravaggio’s intention encompassed to move the audience’s focus to the core activity, which the figures were doing.

Consequently, this was his intention of darkening the background by illuminating only the figures and tomb, though it seems so dramatic compared to the real illumination. Since, Caravaggio’s tenebroso does not allow slow movement of light to the targeted figures and spreading to the surroundings, but abruptly results to a sharp focus to the intended direction. Probably, this is to deny insignificant areas (background) adequate illumination, which common with Catholicism images meant for meditation or commemoration.

Jacques-Louis David has also adopted the same technique though his intention entailed to soften the scene’s horror. This is by utilizing warm yellow light that would give the image a fairer outlook contrary to its reality (Marat had a skin diseases) (Greene 402). Dark shade in this image is similar to Caravaggio’s, which evades eliminating the background coupled with shift the audience’s focus to the main figure. Besides, the dark shade in this image softens murder’s merciless stubbing and the knife that is lying on the floor, though