Vincenzo Foppa of Brescia, founder of the Lombard school, his life ...

198 VINCENZO FOPPA
treatment in Dr. Frizzoni's Madonna, in the Brera altarpiece, in the Trivulzio
saints, and in many other works ;
the arrangement of the drapery, whether
falling in deeply cut folds, as in the garments of the Madonna, the Magdalen,
and Nicodemus, or clinging to the form, as in the mantle on the Madonna's
left arm and elsewhere, is identical with the treatment of the drapery in the
Brera fresco of 1485 and in
the Madonna of the Castello Museum.
The left hand of the Madonna is of a form which we often meet with in the
master's paintings, and the pose—resting lightly on the body of the Saviour
though unable to grasp it firmly—is a characteristic to which we have already
drawn attention in the works of Foppa, a characteristic which he shares with
Ercole Roberti. The panel in short contains innumerable indications of
Vincenzo's style, and this is not only true of all the principal figures, but
applies equally to the most subordinate details in the background. In the
pose and drawing of the horsemen, which involuntarily recall the Regisole, in
the treatment of the trees, of the charming landscape seen near the gateway,
and of the buildings, we have the clearest possible evidence of Foppa's hand.
But setting aside outward forms and characteristics, it is in the psychological
quality of the picture that we find the most indisputable proof of the spirit of
this sincere and earnest master. Here, as in the Bergamo Crucifixion, the
almost frenzied despair of one figure is admirably counterbalanced by the selfcontrolled
and dignified bearing of the others. Foppa's mastery in depicting
the emotions is apparent in all the heads, and culminates in the face of the
Madonna, which is a very remarkable achievement. There is no recourse here
to exaggerated expression or to any external elements ; the whole effect is
attained by a supreme power of characterization and by the painter's intimate
sympathy with the attitude of mind which he has sought to depict. The depth
and intensity of an overwhelming grief are portrayed with the utmost
simplicity, but with a seizing truth and reality which are wholly convincing.
From this point of view the picture stands on a high level and may rank with
the most pathetic and touching representations of the subject ever produced.'
The same profound but restrained feeling is depicted in the countenance
of the Mary seated on the right with bowed head and clasped hands, in that of
the Magdalen and of St. John, and it is still more strikingly apparent in the fine
head of Nicodemus, on whose features sorrow has left her indelible mark, which
"stern self-repression has conquered every outward demonstration of woe."
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We are glad to see that Mr. Berenson also ranks this picture high, and we cannot
do better than quote his appreciative words: "Foppa's compositions," he observes,
"are among the most impressive of the century . . . even his action, as we must grant
while looking at his two St. Sebastians at Milan, is that of a master, and in a work like
his Berlin Deposition of a great master. In what other treatment of this subject do we
find such anticipations of Michelangelo's noblest style?" (pp. cii., p. 99).