10 CORREGGIO (Antonio Allegri) Italian, circa 1489/94-1534 Head of Christ, circa 1525—30 Oil on panel 1 28.6 x 23 cm (11¼ x 9 /16 in.) 94.PB.74 Antonio Allegri, known as Correggio after the town of his birth, was the leading High Renaissance artist in the region of Emilia in north-central Italy. The Head of Christ illustrates Correggio's invention of a new type of devotional imagery where the figures seem to be caught in vibrant, realistic moments. The subject derives from the legend of Saint Veronica. When Christ fell on the way to the Crucifixion he was comforted by Veronica, who wiped his face with her veil, miraculously impressing his image upon it. Instead of the traditional iconic composition, which derived from the relic of the Savior's face imprinted on the veil, Correggio portrays a hauntingly naturalistic Christ, who turns toward the viewer and parts his lips as if to speak. Veronica's veil is the folded, white cloth background that wraps around Christ's shoulder and ends in soft white fringes at the lower right. The painting's profound devotional impact depends upon Correggio's bold invention: Christ is shown wrapped within the veil at the instant before the miracle. The artist has made it appear that the living face of Christ turns to confront the viewer. Correggio's reassessment of a traditional image intended for contemplation and private prayer may be related to the renewed sense of piety that followed the return of Veronica's veil, along with the other principal relics of Christendom, to the Basilica of Saint Peter's after their theft during the sack of Rome in 1527. Numerous copies of the Head of Christ attest to the success of the novel composition and to the high regard in which this artist, long considered second in stature only to Raphael, was held. DA ITALIAN SCHOOL 25