The Raising of Lazarus

Initially dated to the youthful period (1630–1640) of Mattia Preti, better known as the Cavalier Calabrese because of the title he received from the Order of Malta and his region of origin, and later reassigned to the late 1640s, The Raising of Lazarus still reveals a style firmly rooted in the dramatic vigour of the Neapolitan Caravaggisti, from whom the painter particularly adopted a dark naturalism, here cut through by a shaft of light that recalls Caravaggio's The Calling of Saint Matthew; at the same time, in the figure of Mary Magdalene, kneeling in the extreme left foreground, one can already perceive the fascination exerted by the Venetian painting of the previous century. In illustrating the scene, the artist concentrates attention on the astonishment produced by the miraculous act, according to a figurative poetics centred on the search for dramatic effects rich in pathos: the episode is set beneath a portico in order to create an intense chiaroscuro effect, in which powerful beams of light strike the figures obliquely, highlighting the pale, emaciated body of Lazarus upon the tomb; opposite him, Jesus raises his hand in a firm gesture of life-giving blessing, while numerous figures around them express amazement by throwing their arms wide open. The work is structured with a narrative and theatrical staging: indeed, the gestures and expressions of the bystanders are particularly evident; the women on the left cover their mouths and noses to avoid the stench emanating from the body of Lazarus, who has been brought back to life by Jesus, commanding him, "Lazarus, come forth"; the elderly man wearing a turban, together with a young boy, behind the standing Christ, pushes forward to catch a glimpse of the scene, while two men on the opposite side comment on the event. Mattia Preti depicts the very moment in which Jesus asks that the burial cloths, in which Lazarus had been wrapped during the three days he lay in the tomb, be removed from the newly resurrected man, who is being supported by several figures.