Set against a stark, grey background, the Descent from the Cross (or, Deposition) shows the anguished Joseph of Aramathia, Nicodemus, and Saint John the Evangelist taking down the lifeless, green-hued body of Christ from the cross.
Beneath, in a separate grouping, we find the Virgin and Mary Magdelene grieving over the horrific event that has taken place, the crucifixion.
The Descent from the Cross, originally painted for the Duomo, remains in it's original location in the Pinocoteca Comunale di Volterra.
I am not exactly sure why you chose to discuss this painting, but I am glad since I have had to cut it from our scheduled lectures. Did you know that your pal Filippino Lippi's version of this painting was a huge influence on Rosso's (according to me)? See my article on the painting:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.abebooks.com/ROSSO-FIORENTINOS-DESCENT-CROSS-FRANCISCAN-CONTEXT/7775860467/bd
which you can probably find at our library in the Sixteenth Century Journal.
You can read it as an MSU student on JSTOR:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/2540988?uid=3739768&uid=2129&uid=2134&uid=2&uid=70&uid=4&uid=3739256&sid=21102994888931