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92:(Matthew was a tax collector before becoming an apostle of Christ), suitably dressed, rising "to go to Our Lord, who, passing by with his disciples in the street, calls him...". And on the left, Matthew at the moment of his martyrdom, celebrating Mass at the altar, with "a crowd of men and women, young and old and children...some appalled and others pitying...".
77:, which he had purchased within San Luigi dei Francesi ("Saint Louis of the French"), the church of the French community in Rome in 1565. The cardinal was rich and he had already paid for part of the construction of the church facade. He put a large sum towards the high altar and specified that his chapel be decorated with scenes from the life of his name-saint,
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Caravaggio's solution to decorating a typically gloomy Roman church interior has been deemed noteworthy. Visitors to the
Contarelli Chapel today are confronted with paintings that use the gloom for effect. Caravaggio also considered the lighting in the chapel, as each of the two side paintings are
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Cesari finished the vault by 1593, but then became occupied with papal commissions; Cobaert produced a statue that was rejected, in part because it represented the
Apostle without the traditional angel. This statue was later bought by the Archconfraternity of the Santissima Trinita` dei Pellegrini
259:, a scene in which an angel dictates to St. Matthew the gospel. Although the three paintings by Caravaggio are today the star attraction of the chapel, the frescos by Cesari, who is considered by academics to have been overshadowed by Caravaggio, have been increasingly appreciated for their
135:, had recently converted from Protestantism to Catholicism, but much remained to be done. Conversion was to be the Pope's theme with regard to France. Alarmed by the fact that Rome would be overrun with French pilgrims, the prefect in charge of the Fabricca, and of the money, Cardinal
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were installed by July 1600. When
Cobaert delivered his statues, the churchmen rejected them, and then commissioned Caravaggio to do another painting for the altarpiece, still following the Cardinal's original instructions. The third and final work,
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and placed in the chapel dedicated to their patron. In 1597, the money for the project was transferred to the
Fabbrica di San Pietro, which administered the Church's buildings, yet producing no result. In 1599, preparations began for a
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The chapel owes its existence to an endowment left by the French cardinal, Matthieu
Cointerel (Contarelli in Italian), who died in 1585. He left instructions for the decoration of the chapel, the first one to the left of the
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lit by a beam coming from the only source of natural light. The decorative cycle began with the painting on the left side of the chapel, invisible to the viewer when first entering the church. It is a large panel of the
60:. The paintings were Caravaggio's first major public commission and one that cemented his reputation as a master artist. The chapel commemorates the French cardinal
139:, suggested that his own personal painter, Caravaggio, should be contracted to paint oils on canvas for the two side walls where Cesari would not put his murals.
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Cointerel's executor, Virglio
Cresenzi, commissioned a Flemish sculptor, Jacques Cobaert, to make a marble statue of Matthew and an angel for the altar.
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The contract with
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look directly at a seated
Matthew, and Jesus points at Matthew, "Calling". His hand references the receiving hand of Adam in the
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style. The Cesari fresco was finished in c. 1593, at which point
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Smarthistory - Caravaggio's paintings in the
Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi
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382:"Caravaggio's paintings in the Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi"
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Hess, Jacob (1951). "The Chronology of the Contarelli Chapel".
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Chapel in the church of San Luigi dei Francesi in Rome
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Smarthistory - Caravaggio's Calling of Saint Matthew
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384:. Smarthistory at Khan Academy. Archived from
358:. Smarthistory at Khan Academy. Archived from
280:"Where to see Caravaggio's paintings in Rome"
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356:"Caravaggio's Calling of Saint Matthew"
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243:On the right side of the wall is the
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256:The Inspiration of Saint Matthew
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179:Calling of St. Matthew
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38:Cappella Contarelli
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469:Web Gallery of Art
464:Capella Contarelli
425:Caravaggio: A Life
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261:Mannerist
188:St. Peter
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