"Saint Mary Magdalene at the Sepulcher" by Giovanni Girolamo Savoldo
I am not convinced art is more about what you see than it is about what you feel.
I recently took a trip to the Getty Museum in Los Angeles, CA. As my friend and I were perusing the walls and walls of beauty in the Italian gallery, I came across this painting. The description tells the Biblical story of Mary Magdalene as she sees Christ for the first time as the risen Messiah.
This painting captured me in a way I have never been captured by art. I began to process what I was seeing, feeling and I felt emotions rapidly swirling through me. I was raised listening and learning the stories of the Bible but never had I felt Mary Magdalene to be portrayed in such beauty. The golden shroud is immaculately detailed though, when I saw this painting, it brought waves of shame and happiness over me. All at the same time, I could have cried and laughed.
A million people could walk by this painting and it mean nothing to them. I choose to believe this painting had such an impact on me and the other people gathered by the painting because of our heightened level of passion. I could feel the others really taking in the painting and allowing it to resonate inside them. It feels as if the work of the truly passionate can only be appreciated by the truly passionate. Is this why many people don't care for museums? Does low art enthusiasm and museum attendance have a connection with true, deep rooted passion?
In that moment, standing in front of that painting, I felt unbelievably special. More so than I have in a long time. Passion stirs me on the inside and somehow manages to deepen my gifts with every artistic experience.
