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Elements of Caravaggio in Gadda’s prose

Meriel Baines

Although Gadda certainly admired Caravaggio’s work, his relationship with the great baroque painter extended far beyond the conventional appreciation of an artist’s talents. Ezio Raimondi identifies the significance of Caravaggio in Gadda’s life:

Per Gadda le opere di Caravaggio erano un’epifania di quelle che egli ha chiamato tante volte «le ragioni della vita». In una nota a pie’ di pagina, in rapporto a un passo sulle forze profonde che spingono e orientano l’uomo nella sua vitale ricerca di senso, Gadda dichiarava di fronte alle tele del pittore lombardo «un’ebbrezza mista di gratitudine». (Le incidenze lombarde, EJGS 0/2000)

Caravaggio’s art influenced Gadda on many different levels, helping to shape the contours both of his personal «ricerca di senso» in the world, and of his artistic production. From a surface consideration of the facts of the two artists’ lives, it is possible to recognise similarities, which could account for the affinity Gadda felt with the painter. Caravaggio and Gadda made the same journey from Milan to Rome, where both were inspired by the contradictions of this ancient, but corrupt city and chose to represent the face of the Roman underworld in all its seedy details in their works.

The parallels between Caravaggio and Gadda, although present in the facts of their lives and their common source of inspiration, are most evident in the fabric of their artistic output. Gadda reflected on the artist’s approach to painting, as he reveals in his essay Il pasticciaccio:

E poi un problema estetico, ed etico, mi ha sempre scavato l’anima: a me, sì, che venni imputato di calligrafismo, di barocchismo. Qual è il grado di adesione interna, di accensione intima nei confronti del tema, che induce ad opera l’artista, che gli guida la mano sulla tela? Sì: la mano e il pennello? (SGF I 509)

Gadda, therefore, is aware of the critical evaluation of the artistic qualities of his prose, which cause him to be described with a vocabulary reserved for painters. His meditations on the artist’s methods show him to be sensitive to a vision of the world centred around pictorial representation. Indeed, throughout Gadda’s writings, it is possible to distinguish a painterly quality of his prose. His very dense, thickly layered vocabulary is certainly reminiscent of the intense, viscous nature of oil paints. Furthermore, Gadda writes in a series of episodes, or moments, each of which could represent the instant of frozen action which is captured on a painter’s canvas. Just as a painting can suggest a narrative direction, but does not provide an ending, each of the episodes described by Gadda moves towards a conclusion which will never be reached: witness Quer pasticciaccio brutto de via Merulana and La cognizione del dolore.

A study of the influence of Caravaggio on Gadda’s work should certainly take into account the Calling of St. Matthew and the Conversion of St. Paul, which Gadda referred to specifically in his writings. A further piece, the Death of the Virgin is helpful in reading key events in Quer pasticciaccio and La cognizione. The consideration of the episode of the questioning of Ines in chapter seven of Quer pasticciaccio, in relation to the Calling of St. Matthew, provides an excellent starting-point for the task of tracing the influence of caravaggesque themes in Gadda’s writing. In the Racconto italiano di ignoto del novecento, Gadda describes Caravaggio’s painting:

Sulla tavola un cerchio luminoso, l’intersezione del cono di luce d’una lampada appesa: e, dentro quel cerchio magico, delle carte e dei libri ed uno aperto, con meravigliose figure. I margini si perdevano nel buio, quasi attingendo dal buio la potenza misteriosa della significazione e una figura alta ed immota riceveva i raggi centrali del proiettore… Il Cristo del Caravaggio rivolgeva a Matteo un muto rimprovero, un muto ordine. E il viso del Martire si illuminava di una tristezza tragica e di una gratitudine gioiosa, preludio terreno ai gaudi impensabili della vita vera. (SVP 554-55)

The unique importance of light in Caravaggio’s work is familiar to every critic or viewer of his art. Raimondi remarks: «Senza la luce cosa sarebbe Caravaggio?» (Raimondi 1990: 151). Gadda is also fascinated by the painter’s striking and dramatic manipulation of light. François Quiviger, in his guide to Caravaggio, quotes the late seventeenth-century antiquary, Pietro Bellori, who refers to the artist’s methods:

He found a way of arranging [his models] in the dark atmosphere of a closed room, placing a light high up to fall in a straight line on a principal part of the body, leaving the rest in shadow, giving them power by the intensity of the chiaroscuro. (Quiviger 1992: 23)

This positioning of the source of light in relation to the models recalls the typical arrangement of an interrogation, in which the subject in placed directly under a lamp. Gadda describes the room of the Santo Stefano police station, where Ines is questioned: «Lo stanzone era freddo, vi si vedeva il fiato: le lampadine della Mobile erano lampadine del governo». The impression is of a poorly lit room with inadequate sources of light, which may have created shadows similar to those in Caravaggio’s paintings.

Throughout the account of Ines’ questioning, references are made to the light and particularly to the contrast between light and shadow. Raimondi comments on Caravaggio’s use of light:

E la luce però è uno scontro continuo con le tenebre. Questo dipingere spesso con le candele, con la luce che va nel buio, cha va contro i muri, contro i volti che vengono come schiaffeggiati dalla luce oltre che accarezzati, è certamente una delle grandi conquiste della pittura europea del Seicento… (Raimondi 1990: 151)

This active, almost combative light is also present in Quer pasticciaccio. Ines is described in terms relating to light or shadow, as if she is defined by light and must fight against the shadows which surround her. Her physical appearance suggests both light and shadow:

… con occhi affossati, ombrati, con la bianca fronte fasciata di tristezza sotto quei capelli biondi così aspri, che s’erano induriti di poca pioggia rasciutta e di crassume disseccato nella polvere (quei capelli, pensaron tutti, donde un pettine di celluloide verde avrebbe cavato oro nel sole)…

On another occasion, she is depicted exclusively through images of light:

… lacrime brillarono, spendide repentinamente, sotto i lunghissimi cigli dorati (traverso il di cui pettine, un tempo, al suo sguardo di bimba, si frangeva e si iridava nei mattini la luce, la fulgida luce albana).

The shadows in the room, however, are insistent and Ines is weary: «Chinò il capo, che, ricadendo sul volto, i capelli aridi o impastati misero in ombre, e a momenti nascosero». She manages, nevertheless, to fight back the darkness:

Nella stanchezza, nel pianto, eretta, da ultimo, dentro la mucida luce del camerone aveva parlato risplendendo: i cigli, biondi, rivolti ad alto, irraggiavano sopra la serietà luminosa della sguardo…

The heavenly direction («ad alto») of Ines’ gaze and the light which emanates from it recalls Christ’s gesture in the Calling of St. Matthew, with which he seems to introduce light into the dark room and direct the beam of light towards the figure of St. Matthew. Christ’s gesture not only duplicates the movement of light into the room, but also establishes a narrative direction in the painting. St. Matthew is thus called to knowledge of God through the force of this gesture. The desire to link people together and construct a narrative train also motivates Ines’ questioning:

Non c’era nesso apparente, ma chissà poi non ci fosse, chissà Ingravallo non lo divinasse, muto e nero sul suo riflettere, non c’era alcun séguito dal garzone in grembiule, dal rapinatore in tuta, dall’assassino ignoto, agli occhioni della zingara.

Just as Christ’s gesture is able to create and link a train of events, the gestures or poses of the others who are present serve to characterise them according to their reactions to Jesus’ presence. Gadda also isolates and describes with great precision individual gestures of the participants in Ines’ questioning. Ines buries her head in her arm: «col volto tuttavia tuffato entro il gomito, co li capelli che spiovevano giù secchi secchi fino al di là del gomito, nascondendole del tutto la fronte…». This movement echoes the downward gaze of the young man on the far left of Caravaggio’s painting, while one of Ingravallo’s gestures recalls the aggressive defiance of the young man with the sword:

… sopraccigli e cigli revulsi inesorabilmente a le stelle: tonalità inappellabile: palmo in avanti a respingente, a respingere ogni obiezione lecita o illecita: diti irraggiati ad ostensorio.

Although these poses reveal qualities of the characters of Ingravallo and Ines, Gadda here demonstrates his ability to recreate in prose the dramatic, frozen gestures of the subjects of Caravaggio’s painting.

The arrangement of the figures in the Calling of St. Matthew is broken into two distinct camps by Christ’s outstretched arm. The gazes of the men at the table are directed upwards and towards Jesus and St. Peter who, in turn, look down at the seated men. This exchange of gazes fills the painting with dynamism resulting from the charged emotions communicated in each man’s eyes. Gadda imitates this by positioning Ines in opposition to the various police officials who are questioning her. The exchange of gazes is also particularly dramatic. Ines is sensitive to the men’s stares: «Ella sentiva su di sé, rabbrivendone, le guardate degli uomini». These looks express ugly emotions:

Ma gli uomini, quegli uomini, la ricattavano col solo sguardo, acceso e rotto a intervalli, dai segni e dai lampi, non pertinenti alla pratica, di una cupidità ripugnante.

Ines, however, replies to her questioners with a look of defiance, and sets in motion an exchange of gazes similar to that represented by Caravaggio: «Ma levò il capo: con il volto bagnato li rimirava».

A further trait which distinguishes the two groups in the Calling of St. Matthew is the difference in their clothing. Jesus and St. Peter appear barefoot and in simple garments, while the men at the table are dressed in rich, decorative materials. Caravaggio’s mastery of colour allows him to create a harmony of reds, greens, oranges, yellows as well as the fine detail of the feathers in the boys’ hats. This contrast between elaborate and poor clothing is present in Quer pasticciaccio. Gadda insists on the wretched state of Ines’ clothes:

Una sdrucitura, all’attacco della manica, un’altra della sottostante maglietta, scoprirono il biancheggiare della spalla. Nulla aveva più, per celarsi, che quello strappato e scolorato avanzo d’un indumento di povera.

Throughout the passage, Gadda returns to the description of Ines’ miserable clothing and the indignity of the holes which reveal her skin. Although the police officials do not provide an incredibly striking contrast with Ines, there are other moments in the text when Gadda uses clothing to display his descriptive skills and his particular attention to colour. The most obvious instance is his account of la Menegazzi’s attire, in the first chapter:

La mantiglia-vestaglia si soprapponeva al foulard, ai foulards anzi, non uno ma due, incipriati loro pure e vagamente modulati nei toni, che sfumavano il primo nel secondo e il secondo nei tenui pètali, o forse farfalle, di quel chimono un tantino castigliano.

Gadda’s attention to detail and chromatic sensitivity are elements which give his prose a painterly quality. The contrast between muted, poor colours and shining, rich materials pervades Quer pasticciaccio and explains his insistence on the precious jewels, and specifically topazes, which are found in the most humble surroundings on the outskirts of Rome. This juxtaposition is contained in the description of Ines’ eyes: «le lacrime avevano deterso le iridi, castano scure, le due gemme turchesi che le racchiudevano. Il volto appariva sudicio, stanco».

Caravaggio paints few objects in the Calling of St. Matthew, but each one is of particular significance. The objects on the table symbolise Matthew’s occupation as a tax collector and, therefore, represent the reality of his worldly existence which he is on the point of rejecting. The young man’s sword becomes a signifier of worldly violence and conflict, which contrasts with Christ’s perfect serenity. Raimondi observes that «nello spazio non già umanistico ma umano del naturalismo caravaggesco gli oggetti assurgono al rango di protagonisti» (Le incidenze lombarde, EJGS 0/2000). He also identifies a similar relationship to objects expressed in Gadda’s writings:

Nel suo spazio visivo, d’altronde, anche gli oggetti fanno parte dei rapporti umani, sono intrinsi di umanità: e non perché vengano antropomorfizzati, ma perché sono una componente importante delle relazioni degli uomini che vivono a contatto con loro. (EJGS 0/2000)

Just as Caravaggio paints very few objects, Gadda also describes a limited range of everyday articles, but with great attention to detail. The central importance of objects in Gadda’s prose can be seen in the example of the photograph of Ines’ boyfriend, Diomede. Ines explains the emotional significance of the photo, which she had refused to hand over to Diomede, even though he beat her: «Armeno quer ricordo! de tanto bene che s’ereno voluto!». This coveted object then passes through the hands of all the officers, soliciting diverse reactions: «Ingravallo pure l’allumò di traverso, come di malavoglia, in realtà con una certa stizza segreta: la passò a Fumi, sbadatamente».

Finally Pompeo retains possession of it, causing Ines to despair: «Al veder la foto dell’amor suo riparar sul cuore dello Sgranfia, la Ines, povera pupa, allibì». Not only does this photograph impact Ines’ sentimental life as an object, but the fact that it is a portrait also endows it with a deeper significance. Diomede’s expression offers clues to his character in the same way as the subjects of Caravaggio’s paintings dramatise their personalities on the canvas: «Sopra al vivere delle gote e del collo du occhi fermi, strafottenti: che promettevano il meglio, alle ragazze, alle serve, il peggio a’ loro depentolati risparmi».

Caravaggio’s connection with the Roman underworld characterises both his life and his art. In the Apologia manzoniana, Gadda comments on the unsavoury companions of Matthew: «Il Caravaggio vide e dipinse il Signore e Matteo e poi giovinastri dalle turgide labbra, cocchieri, sgherri, garzoni. Meglio girare alla larga» (SGF I 682). He imagines the night-time brawls in the street in which the sword and the money included in the painting will come into play and describes a world, «ove sono le spade, le piume, le corse affannose: e, a tarda notte, la gioventù prorompente nei canti e nel sangue». The poor Romans who lived on the fringes of the law not only provided inspiration for Caravaggio’s paintings, but often served as models. Mario Praz comments:

Caravaggio chiama una zingara che passa per la strada e la dipinge tale e quale. Per questo alla Madonna di Loreto plaudirono i popolani, che nei due umili inginocchiati, uno coi piedi sporchi in evidenza… ritrovavan se stessi, collocati sugli altari come finalmente investiti di quella dignità che nell’intimo dei loro cuori si sentivan di possedere. (Praz 1975: 269)

Gadda also shows his sympathy for those on the margins of society and in Quer pasticciaccio he paints an ample picture of the drama of poverty in Rome. Indeed, his depiction of Ines demonstrates his ability to bestow dignity on the most downtrodden members of society. Throughout her questioning, Ines is able to defend herself to the police officials and maintain her essential sense of self. Gadda succeeds in staging dramatic encounters in poor surroundings and this is a technique pioneered by Caravaggio, as can be observed in the Calling of St. Matthew and other paintings including the Beheading of St. John the Baptist.

The Conversion of St. Paul is another of Caravaggio’s paintings which captured Gadda’s imagination and which he mentions in his essay Il pasticciaccio:

Paolo atterrato dalla folgore: raccorciato, nanificato a terra dalle leggi inesorabili della prospettiva. Tutto il quadro occupato dalla Bestia… La Bestia immobile, insenziente, davanti al fulgurare della Luce: il negoziante di tappeti sbattuto a terra sulla strada che lo dilungava dal Verbo: che lo portava all’emporio a Damasco: richiamato nella direzione opposta, la giusta. (SGF I 510)

This painting includes many of the same qualities as the Calling of St. Matthew, which influenced Gadda’s prose: the importance of light, intense colours, gestures, the significance of object and the potential for drama in squalid surroundings. In his description of the Conversion of St. Paul, however, Gadda chooses to focus on the artist’s manipulation of visual space. The canvas is almost entirely filled by the figures and the eye is drawn to the different planes and levels contained within the painting. The contrasting horizontal and vertical lines express the drama of the sudden brightness of the vision. Raimondi characterises Caravaggio’s use of space:

E si rendono conto che a questo punto lo spazio non è più semplice contenitore, ma diventa soggetto attivo nel quadro, diventa una specie di forza, reagisce sui corpi. Pensino a certi gesti di Caravaggio: il gesto è dentro lo spazio e lo spazio esiste e dialoga col gesto, quindi c’è una sorta di dinamicità che è la dinamicità del rapporto spaziale. (Raimondi 1990: 163)

St. Paul is thrown back towards the viewer and his outstretched arms create a sense of space within the painting. In this way, space exists in relation to the figures in the scene and becomes an active participant in the drama.

Gadda explores space and the significance of a physical positioning of figures and objects in La cognizione del dolore. The narrative space of this novel is much more restricted than that of Quer pasticciaccio as the author only describes a handful of locations. The central importance of Gonzalo’s mother’s house is reflected in the detailed account of its layout and the spaces which it represents: the bedrooms, kitchen, living room, basement, garden. Gadda also considers the space which is created by the protagonists’ physical relationships to each other and the world around them. He adds to his description of the Conversion of St. Paul by observing that this painting, «non può considerarsi priva di una tal quale accensione romantica, o di significazione drammatica» (SGF I 510). It is partly through these relationships of space that Gadda narrates the drama of La cognizione.

The doctor’s visit allows Gadda to investigate the spatial possibilities afforded by the various poses of Gonzalo in relation to the doctor. At first, Gonzalo lies on the bed, while the doctor stands over him, creating the juxtaposition of horizontal and vertical which recalls the positioning of the figures in the Conversion of St. Paul. Gadda then distorts this arrangement, making the pose much more complicated:

Nell’ascoltarlo dalla schiena quando era seduto sul letto e tutto inchinato in avanti, con il gonfio e le pieghe del ventre in mezzo ai femori, a crepapancia, e tra i ginocchi la faccia, la camicia arrovesciata al di sopra il capo come da un colpo di vento, oppure sdraiato bocconi, mezzo di sbieco, mutande e pantaloni senza più nesso, allora il dottore aveva l’aria di comunicargli per telefono i suoi desiderata… (Cognizione, RR I 621)

The absurdity of the positioning of Gonzalo’s body communicates the element of humiliation of the medical examination and also the fact that it is a ridiculous exercise, since the patient has no real illness. Furthermore, the doctor has been able to maintain his vertical stance and thus appears to be more civilised, more dominant than Gonzalo.

Another dramatic use of space, which approaches the romantic as suggested by Gadda in Il pasticciaccio, is the account of Gonzalo’s mother’s attempts to hide from the storm. She seeks refuge in the basement, which seems to resemble rather an infernal realm: «scendendo, scendendo, giù, giù, verso il buio e l’ umidore del fondo». Here she huddles in a corner where she is first assailed by the darkness that surrounds her and then by the proximity of a scorpion:

Ed ecco lo scorpione, risveglio, aveva proceduto, come di lato, come a raggirarla, ed ella, tremando, aveva retroceduto dentro il suo solo essere, distendendo una mano diaccia e stanca, come a volerlo arrestare. (RR I 676)

Here space is defined by the figures of the scorpion and the mother. Just as St. Paul reaches his arms out towards the horse, creating space within Caravaggio’s painting, the mother’s gesture also defines the space within Gadda’s account. Although the horse and the scorpion are of vastly different proportions, the effect of the scorpion on the old woman makes it seem monstrous, as it skirts around her, almost invading the space which she delineates with her outstretched hand. Gadda thus demonstrates his painter’s ability to create a visual space within his narrative and to manipulate notions of perspective and proportion.

Caravaggio’s paintings often address the theme of violence on bodies, most vividly expressed through scenes of decapitation: Judith and Holofernes, the Beheading of St. John the Baptist, Salome. Gadda shares this interest in aggression and homicide and violent death characterises Quer pasticciaccio and La cognizione. Caravaggio’s the Death of the Virgin, which Gadda does not refer to in his writings, is most instructive for a reading of Gadda’s account of the bodies of Liliana and Gonzalo’s mother. The controversy surrounding the Death of the Virgin and the reasons which motivated Caravaggio’s patrons to reject it, are documented by Roberto Longhi:

Perchè vi aveva «ritratto in persona di nostra Donna una cortigiana da lui amata»? «Perchè aveva fatto con poco decoro la madonna gonfia e con gambe scoperte»? æper havervi troppo imitato una donna morta gonfia»?

In this painting Caravaggio again employs his technique of placing a figure from the streets of Rome in a setting which expresses great religious significance. The Virgin thus resembles a woman of the Roman lower classes, and this attention to realistic representation is also evident in the way she is depicted in death. Her pose and the appearance of her face are naturalistic, yet neither denote impropriety or the violation of her sacred status that were claimed by Caravaggio’s patrons. Increased realism has not led to loss of dignity.

The discovery and contemplation of the bodies of Liliana and Gonzalo’s mother are particularly difficult scenes for the reader. Although the Death of the Virgin does not involve violence, the background of Caravaggio’s paintings which depict violent scenes and his representation in this instance of a dead woman, can be helpful in suggesting an approach to the descriptions of Liliana and Gonzalo’s mother. The portrayal of Liliana’s corpse is particularly horrendous and Gadda does not spare the reader any detail. He describes her position on the floor:

Il corpo della povera signora giaceva in una posizione infame, supino, con la gonna di lana grigia e una sottogonna bianca buttate all’indietro, fin quasi al petto. (Pasticciaccio, RR II 58)

The abandon of death is somewhat reminiscent of the Virgin’s pose as depicted by Caravaggio and the outrage of the skirt which is thrown back could also be compared to the scandal felt by many critics at the sight of the Virgin’s «gambe scoperte». It is, however, the description of Gonzalo’s mother’s body that comes closest to a caravaggesque sensibility:

Nella stanchezza senza soccorso in cui il povero volto si dovette raccogliere tumefatto, come in un estremo ricupero della sua dignità, parve a tutti di leggere la parola terribile della morte… (Cognizione, RR I 755)

Gonzalo’s mother’s face is also swollen in death, but nevertheless retains a certain dignity. Just as Gadda invites the reader to find dignity in the seedy haunts of the Roman underworld, he similarly expresses dignity in death, even when the body has been violated by the outrage of violence.

A consideration of Gadda’s works through Caravaggio’s art reveals both the painterly quality of his prose and the existence of themes in his writing which may have been the result of the influence of the painter whom he admired so much. Gadda’s defense to the frequent accusation that he was a baroque was the defiant «barocco è il mondo» (Cognizione, RR I 760). If the world is baroque, however, this also means that it is triste, as Gadda suggests in the Apologia manzoniana: «Il barocco lombardo di quel tempo ha tenui tocchi e una grave tristezza».

Both Gadda and Caravaggio seek to represent the world around them with a certain degree of naturalism and this includes the depiction of the tragedies and injustices which form an intrinsic part of the fabric of their environments. This approach is encapsulated in Caravaggio’s treatment of still life. Although he may paint a basket of fruit with great delicacy and precision, he is also careful to include a worm-eaten piece of fruit or a dried leaf. The contrast between the fresh and decaying fruit creates the tension and the drama in Caravaggio’s work. Gadda is also fully aware of the contradictions inherent in human life and represents them in his writings. This shared Weltanschauung may constitute the attraction and fascination of Caravaggio’s paintings for Gadda and account for the extent of the painter’s influence on his work.

Bibliography

Gadda, C.E., La cognizione del dolore, in Opere, vol. I, Romanzi e racconti I. Ed. by D. Isella. Milan: Garzanti 1988 (abbr. RR I).

Gadda, C.E., Opere, vol. III, Saggi Giornali Favole I. Ed. by D. Isella. Milan: Garzanti, 1991 (abbr. SGF I).

Gadda, C.E., Quer pasticciaccio brutto de via Merulana, in Opere, vol. II, Romanzi e racconti II. Ed. by D. Isella. Milan: Garzanti, 1989 (abbr. RR II).

Gadda, C.E., Opere, vol. V, Scritti vari e postumi. Ed. by D. Isella. Milan: Garzanti, 1993 (abbr. SVP).

Lipparini, M., Le metafore del vero: percezione e deformazione figurativa in Carlo Emilio Gadda. Pisa: Pacini, 1994.

Praz, M., Il giardino dei sensi: studi sul manierismo e il barocco. Milan: Mondadori, 1975.

Quiviger, F., Caravaggio. London: Scala Publications, 1992.

Raimondi, E., Barocco moderno: Carlo Emilio Gadda e Roberto Longhi. Bologna: CUSL, 1990.

Raimondi, E., Gadda e le incidenze lombarde della luce. EJGS 0/2000.

Zuffi, S., Caravaggio. Milan: Mondadori Arte, 1991.