Caravaggio- The Calling of St. Matthew

The Calling of St.Matthew Caravaggio, 1597-1601, Oil on Canvas

The Calling of St. Matthew is one of Caravaggio's early paintings and is one of two paintings he did of St. Matthew. Caravaggio's was a Baroque artist and his well known style of the sharp contrast between light and dark are  clearly shown in this painting. Christ, who we can hardly recognize without the subtle glowing of his halo, enters from the right and what follows him is the beam of light which Caravaggio uses to illuminate the face of  Levi (St. Matthew) and Christ's hand which is very similar to that of Adams in The Creation of Adam done by Michelangelo. This plays upon the fact that many believed that Christ was the second Adam, he was the redemption of mankind. By doing this he emphasizes the higher calling of Levi (St. Matthew). What is interesting about this painting is that Caravaggio setting is very mundane and ordinary . Caravaggio like to portray his religious figures as everyday local people.