The Agony in the Garden

The Agony in the Garden from 1626 at the Metropolitan Museum shows the young Poussin treating Christ's nocturnal anguish. The subject allowed him to explore dramatic lighting and emotional intensity within his developing classical framework. Working in Rome from 1624 onwards, Poussin served a cultivated international clientele of French and Italian patrons who prized his learned, disciplined approach to classical antiquity and religious narrative. His correspondence reveals a painter who rega...

The nocturnal scene employs dramatic lighting to illuminate Christ's suffering. Poussin's handling of the contrast between the anguished Christ and the sleeping disciples creates narrative tension.