probably c. 1305~06, 200*185cm
This picture, sways and surges, every actor alive and functioning, either for or against Christ. Torches blaze and weapons
whirl. But at the heart there is only a tragic stillness, as Jesus
looks into the mock-friendly eyes of His disciple Judas, and truth confronts falsehood with sorrowful love. The betrayer and
the betrayed form the solid centre, with the jaundiced yellow
of Judas' cloak billowing over the figure of Christ as if to swallow Him up. As in all Giotto's work, the heads are of the utmost importance, the natural focal point of the human dramas.
|
