Art History Lecture w/ Tom Richards - Caravaggio Pt.3 - Symbols and Storytelling

An installment in the Art History related content on The FAA Collective Patreon

Dear Patrons,

Thank you for your support! This week we are excited to present you with the third and final part of our art history lecture series on Caravaggio (1571–1610) with Tom Richards, Assistant Director of the Florence Academy of Art. If you haven’t seen the first two lectures we have them linked below:

Art History Lecture w/ Tom Richards – Caravaggio Pt.1 – Introduction 

We learn about the artist’s early years, education, and travels while focusing on the question: “is an artist born or made?”

Art History Lecture w/ Tom Richards – Caravaggio Pt.2 – Simplicity and Force 

We focus on the artworks made mostly in Rome after his travels post-studying, and particularly those found in the La chiesa di San Luigi dei Francesi (The Calling of Saint Matthew, The Inspiration of Saint Matthew, and The Martyrdom of Saint Matthew) and the Basilica di Sant’Agostino (Madonna di Loreto)

In this third lecture we move on in the career of Michelangelo Merisi, more commonly known as “Caravaggio” which is the name of a small town near Milan where the artist was born. Caravaggio was a character of controversial morals seen through the lens of his time as well as ours, and this lecture focuses mostly on the The Seven Acts of Mercy (also known as The Seven Works of Mercy) created for the Pio Monte della Misericordia in Naples in 1607; the city where the artist had fled after killing a man in Rome. Using the works of artists including John Singer Sargent (1856–1925), Lorenzo Ghiberti (1378–1455), Jusepe de Ribera (1591–1652), and Piero della Francesca (d. 1492) and more, Tom Richards expertly guides us through examples of how symbols in paintings can be used to enhance the meaning and narrative behind an artwork. After gaining a deep insight into the conditions under which the artwork was commissioned from Caravaggio, we then take a detailed look at the symbolic and compositional elements of The Seven Acts of Mercy, including a few that untrained eyes might not be able to recognize!

More about Tom:

Tom Richards was born in London in 1982. In addition to his experience as a painter he has an MA in Art History from the University of St Andrews, graduating in 2005. Since then Tom has divided his time between London and Florence. In recent years he has exhibited his work in London and undertaken numerous commissions in Europe and beyond. Before joining The Florence Academy of Art he trained extensively with Charles H. Cecil, a former colleague of Daniel Graves.

To view his work please visit:

Website: www.tawrichards.com

Instagram: @tominflorence