Saint Benedict

Carlo Crivelli painted this Saint Benedict around 1488, likely as part of an altarpiece for a Benedictine foundation in the Italian Marches. The founder of Western monasticism was widely depicted in Italian Renaissance art, typically shown in his black habit with a book and a broken chalice. Crivelli's treatment transforms the monastic subject into a display of his decorative virtuosity. Carlo Crivelli was a Venetian-trained painter who spent most of his career in the Marche, the central Italian region east of the Apennines, where he executed altarpieces for churches in Ascoli Piceno, Camerino, and other provincial centers.

Tempera and gold on panel with Crivelli's characteristic sharp outlines and elaborate decorative detail. The saint's monastic habit provides a dark ground against which Crivelli sets his distinctive ornamental elements.