The Well of Bethesda
Luca Giordano·1687
Historical Context
The Well of Bethesda at Harvard, painted in 1687, depicts the biblical pool in Jerusalem where an angel periodically stirred the waters, healing the first person to enter. Christ's miracle of healing a paralytic at this pool was a significant episode in the Gospel of John. Oil on canvas suited Giordano's rapid working method: he typically laid in compositions with fluid, transparent washes then built form with loaded brushwork, completing large canvases in days. His stylistic eclecticism — ab...
Technical Analysis
The architectural setting of the pool provides a monumental backdrop for the crowd of afflicted figures. Giordano's command of multi-figure compositions is evident in the varied poses and expressions of the suffering and healed.
Look Closer
- ◆Notice the monumental architectural setting of the pool — Giordano uses the Bethesda colonnades to create a grand stage for Christ's healing miracle.
- ◆Look at the varied poses of the afflicted: figures in every posture of disability and suffering crowd the pool's edge, waiting for the angel to stir the waters.
- ◆Find Christ's commanding figure amid the suffering multitude: Giordano positions the healer so that his presence reorganizes the composition around a single point of divine authority.
- ◆Observe that this 1687 Harvard work was created just five years before Giordano's departure for Spain — the confident multi-figure command demonstrates his mature Italian manner at its fullest development.
