Have you seen Correggio’s Assumption of the Virgin? It’s horrifying.
The Feast of the Ascension was celebrated last month and idle conversation over breakfast inspired a discussion about the Assumption versus the Ascension. A “Would you rather” for lapsed Catholics, if you like. Google threw out an image of the fresco, which decorates Parma Cathedral. In it, Jesus is shown descending to greet his mother. It’s a chaotic Baroque scene, composed of many moving parts: The Virgin, St Hilary, St John the Baptist, Judith and Holofornes, Adam and Eve – the whole cast. Mary, shrouded in ill-fitting swaddling, holds her hands up in despair while the crowd around her bays. The atmosphere is more chaotic Bosch than serene Boticelli, exploding with fleshy figures clambering to the top.
