Nicolas Poussin

Background

Nicolas Poussin was the french creator of the classical tradition movement. Throughout his life he spent most of it painting in Rome. His painting theme was historical, such as biblical and ancient history. Most of his paintings demonstrated a lot of vibrancy. He was later influenced by Raphael as he transitioned his paintings to more seductive style.

Rinaldo and Armida

This painting conveys the battle of religion between christian and Muslims to take over Jerusalem . The painting is based on a poem by the name La Gerusalemme liberata about the main characters Rinaldo who is a Christian Crusader and Armida, a Saracen sorceress. A series of paintings were based on these characters. This one in particular was placed in the Pushkin museum in Moscow.

The Martyrdom of St. Erasmus

The Martyrdom of St Erasmus was his first public work in Rome where it stayed as St. Peter’s altarpiece for about 200 years. This commission wasn’t originally for him though. It was first supposed to be done by Pietro da Cortona who although he passed away so the commission was then given to Nicolas. This composition became a test for several paintings in a series of martyrdom.

Venus and Adonis

This painting highlights his theme of mythologies and realism. Also presents the influence Raphael had on him as well as his study of landscapes. The painting overall speaks Nicolas Poussin as it captivates everything he focused on in his career. The painting itself is about the love between Venus and Adonis lost in a world of pleasure. The painting allows the viewer to easily understand the effect that the environment around the subjects create a specific mood supporting the main theme of love.

The Finding of Moses

This was 1 of nineteen events of Moses’s life that was painted by Nicolas.Out of the 19 other paintings he refused to paint scenes of saintly visions or martyrdom (the death or torture at a martyr). This painting was infant Moses’s getting baptized “But Poussin’s interest in Moses may have been prompted by his identification with pagan deities” ( Emil Krén and Daniel Marx). This painting is set on The River of Niles. A unique aspect of this painting is that the group of women in contrast to the men in the background. Signifying one event has more importance over the other. Each woman in the painting plays an important role and has their own story.

The Death of the Virgin

The definition of mannerism. Nicolas received a commission to do inside the Notre-Dame from the Jesuits. This was “The death of the Virgin”. It went missing during the french revolution but found only in recent times around 2000. This painting gave him attention mainly from a poet who influenced him to go to Rome. This was a big step in his career. The painting shows a variety of vivid color and creates a frame around the main subject in the center.