Ecce Homo - Giacomo Sementi (1583 - 1636)

Painting oil on canvas, measuring 65 x 48 cm without frame and 80 x 62 cm with contemporary frame, depicting an ecce homo by Gian Giacomo Sementi (Bologna 1583 – Rome 1636).

He already bears all three attributes of derision, of the fierce irony of when Jesus was elected King of the Jews.
The red cloak that was the prerogative of power, the crown, transformed into a tangle of thorns, and the sceptre of command, which had been replaced by a river cane.

With this investiture, the defendant, accused of insubordination towards religious and military power, was sent to the balcony so that the crowd of Jerusalem's inhabitants could decide his fate.

We know well how derision turned into condemnation, but the moment depicted in this canvas is the moment before the farcical exposure to the cynicism of the crowd; it is a fragment of intimacy and reflection that shines through.

A few drops of blood have dripped onto his collarbone and a reddish bruise can be seen on his shoulder, a clear sign of a back whipped by lashes. Guido Reni was one of the greatest inventors of modern icons, and his process of synthesising form aimed to create images distilled in density, which remained pregnant with pathos and spiritual meanings. It is not difficult to understand how this theme was very successful and developed with various themes from Guido Reni to numerous talented artists of the time.

The author of this canvas is undoubtedly Gian Giacomo Sementi, as can be seen from the way he renders the complexion of the face in fiery tones, in full harmony with the drapery enveloping the shoulders.

The work in question belongs to the Roman period of our artist, i.e. the 1630s and 1640s, as the themes dear to him during his Bolognese period, with a prevalence of geometric shapes and drapery, are tempered by the influence of some of the Baroque innovations that the city had to offer.