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Saint Peter Repentant

1645

Georges de La Tour

(French, 1593-1652)

France, 17th century

Oil on canvas

Framed: 140.3 x 119.1 x 7 cm (55 1/4 x 46 7/8 x 2 3/4 in.); Unframed: 114 x 95 cm (44 7/8 x 37 3/8 in.)

Gift of the Hanna Fund 1951.454

Location

217 Italian Baroque

Description

During Jesus’s arrest on the night of the Last Supper, the apostle Peter denied knowing him. Although Christ forgave his betrayal, Peter was consumed by guilt. La Tour represents Peter as an old man, reflecting on his past actions in a state of perpetual repentance. The apostle’s red-rimmed eyes and the uncertain light of the lantern suggest anxious sleepless nights; muted colors and simple forms give visual expression to Peter’s somber emotions. Unlike other artists inspired by Caravaggio, La Tour worked in relative isolation in northeastern France, and his connection to his Italian counterpart remains unclear.

Inscriptions

Inscription

signed upper right: Georgs delaTour Invet et Pin / 1645

Provenance

[M. Knoedler & Co., New York], sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art, 1951.

[Marshall Spink, London];

Heirs of Reverend Chafy, Bath, Somerset, until May 1951;

Reverend William Lucas Chafy, until 1878, by inheritance to his heirs;

Possibly Alleyn's College of God's Gift, Dulwich, Surrey, until 1857;

Citations

The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958. Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 480 archive.org

The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 117 archive.org

The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 117 archive.org

The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 171 archive.org

The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Catalogue of Paintings, Part 3: European Paintings of the 16th, 17th, and 18th Centuries. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1982. Mentioned: p. 90-91; Reproduced: p. 91

Salmon, Dimitri, and Andrés Ubeda de los Cobos, eds. Georges De La Tour: 1593-1652. Madrid: Museo Nacional del Prado, 2016. Reproduced: p.150-151, no. 27

Exhibition history

Columbus, OH, Columbus Gallery of Fine Arts, november 8-December 16, 1956: "Masterpieces," cat. # 21.

CMA, October 29, 1971-January 2, 1972: "Caravaggio and His Followers," cat. # 39, repr. p. 119.

Paris, Orangerie des Tuileries, Palais du Louvre, May-September 1972: "Georges de La Tour,' ct. #23, pp. 40, 43, 51, 77, 108, 111-112, 188, 190-193, 261, 263.

New York, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, May 26-August 22, 1982: "French Painting in the 17th century," cat. #. Chicago, The Art Institute of Chicago, September 18-November 28, 1982.

Washington, DC, The National Gallery of Art; Fort Worth, TX Kimbell Art Museum. "Georges de La Tour and His World" 10/6/96 - 5/10/97 exhib. cat. no. 24 p. 112; color repr. p. 113, p. 272.

Paris: Galeries nationales du Grand Palais. "Georges de la Tour (1593-1652)" 10/1/97 - 1/26/98; exh. cat. no. 47, color repr. p. 225, pp. 224-225, detail fig. 68, p. 225; fig. 82, p. 254.

Bergamo, Italy: Galleria d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea (organized by Accademia Carrara di Belle Arti/Associazione Giubileo 2000-Bergamo/Diocesi di Bergamo) "The Light of Truth. Caravaggio, La Tour, Rembrandt, Zurbarán [La Luce del Vero. Caravaggio, La Tour, Rembrandt, Zurbarán)" 9/9 - 12/17/00

National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo (3/7/2005 - 5/29/2005): "Georges de la Tour" ex. cat. no. 22, p. 98-99.

The Frick Collection (November 8, 2006 - January 28, 2007): "Masterpieces of European Painting from The Cleveland Museum of Art", exh. cat. no. 11, p. 56-59.

Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage (March 29, 2007 - July 8, 2007): "Masterpieces of European Painting from the Cleveland Museum of Art"

Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid, Spain (2/23/201 - 6/12/2016): "Georges de la Tour" ex. cat. no. 27, p. 150-151.

In Memoriam: Leonard C. Hanna, Jr.. The Cleveland Museum of Art (March 4-April 7, 1958).

Georges de la Tour and His World: Masterpieces in Focus. National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC (October 6, 1996-January 5, 1997); Kimbell Art Museum (February 1-May 10, 1997).

Georges de la Tour (1593-1652). Galeries Nationales du Grand Palais, Paris, France (October 1, 1997-January 26, 1998).

The Light of Truth. Caravaggio, La Tour, Rembrandt, Zurbarán. Galleria d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea Accademia Carrara di Bergamo (September 9-December 17, 2000).

Georges de la Tour. National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo (organizer) (March 7-May 29, 2005).

Georges de la Tour. Museo Nacional del Prado (organizer) (February 23-June 12, 2016).

Cite this page

{{cite web |title=Saint Peter Repentant |url=https://clevelandart.org/art/1951.454 |author=Georges de La Tour |year=1645 |access-date=18 February 2019 |publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

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Saint Peter Repentant

Saint Peter Repentant

Georges de La Tour

France, 17th century

Location

Description

Inscription

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