Adoration of the Magi

Painted around 1640 during Stom’s final decade in Sicily, this Adoration of the Magi belongs to a group of large-scale biblical narratives he produced for churches and private patrons in Palermo and its surroundings. The subject allowed him to combine his trademark candlelight effects with rich costume details. Now in Toulouse’s Musée des Augustins, the work was likely acquired during Napoleonic-era dispersals of Italian church collections. Stom's mastery of candlelight effects was among the most technically accomplished of all Caravaggist painters, surpassing many of his contemporaries in the subtlety of his graduated shadows and the warmth of his artificial illumination.

Stom concentrates all illumination on the Christ child, whose radiance becomes the sole light source in the composition. Thick impasto on the gifts and textiles contrasts with thinly washed shadow areas.