Mary Magdalene reading

Mary Magdalene Reading from around 1527 represents Correggio's humanized approach to the penitent saint. Rather than depicting the dramatic moment of conversion or the austerity of penance, Correggio shows the Magdalene absorbed in devotional reading, creating an image of contemplative spirituality. Antonio da Correggio, working in Parma in the early sixteenth century, was among the most original and influential Italian painters of the High Renaissance. His soft atmospheric modeling (learned from Leonardo), his dynamic compositions designed for ceiling decoration (anticipating the Baroque), and his warm, sensuous approach to both sacred and mythological subjects made him a decisive figure in the transmission of Italian Renaissance painting toward the Baroque. Vasari, who never visited Parma, may have underestimated his significance; later critics, beginning with Bellori, recognized him as one of the foundational figures of the entire European painting tradition after Raphael.

The figure is rendered with extraordinary softness, Correggio's sfumato enveloping the reading Magdalene in warm light. The loose hair and simple garments are treated with the same tender attention as the absorbed expression.