The Gospel of Paul’s Conversion According to Caravaggio
You are on holiday in Rome, walking along the famous Piazza del Popolo and munching on a yummy piece of pizza. The sun is shining. The tourists are smiling. There’s a magnificent church in the middle of the piazza. “I’ll pop in and say a prayer,” you mutter to yourself.
You duck into the Church of Santa Maria del Popolo, a magnificent basilica with 12 side chapels, and walk straight down the aisle toward the high altar. As you are about to pray, you hear children giggling in the Cerasi Chapel to your left. Distracted, you go to see what’s so funny.
A little boy is pointing to a huge painting and telling his two sisters, “Look, the horse has a big bottom. And he’s sticking it right in your face.” Their mother gives you an embarrassed look while trying to shush her children. You look at the painting, expecting to see something religious — but it seems downright rude.
It is Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio’s painting of the Conversion of Saint Paul. You gaze at it. What’s wrong? The horse really is dominating the scene and shoving his posterior right into your face. What is Caravaggio telling you through one of his greatest masterpieces?
