Who was Mary Magdalene? Sinner or saint, penitent or prophet, outcast or icon? Few figures in Christian history have been as persistently reimagined, and as profoundly misunderstood, as Mary Magdalene. Across centuries, cultures, and canvases, she has borne the weight of shifting ideologies, artistic movements, and theological agendas. In the Renaissance (14th-16th century), Mary often appeared in the form of penitence, cloaked in sensuality and sorrow for her past sins in prostitution, the ultimate symbol of repentance and human frailty, balancing physical beauty with emotional profundity. By the Baroque period (16th-18th century), her image took on a new dramatic depth, reflecting the era’s strong sense of spirituality, emotional intensity, and renewed religious fervor. The Catholic Counter-Reformation encouraged religious piety, leading many artists to depict saints in more dynamic compositions. Due to this, Mary was often portrayed in ecstasy, weeping, or enraptured in divine vision, surrounded by symbols of penance such as skulls, crucifixes, and books. Today, she is known as a prominent feminist icon whose identity, once rooted in shame, is now profoundly looked up to by women of the church as a devoted Saint and follower of Christ. This exhibition explores the transformative period in Western art and culture via the Renaissance and Baroque periods, tracing the evolution of Mary Magdalene’s representation and the role of women saints in art and religion. With the aid of Caravaggio’s signature technique chiaroscuro, the stark realism and emotional rawness induces a dramatic interplay of light and shadow that leaves viewers in a deeply personal reflection.
The Penitent Magdalene
Tiziano Vecellio “Titian”, 1531-1535
Oil on canvas, 85.8 x 69.5 cm.
Pitti Palace, Italy,
Inventory 1912 no. 67.
Titian’s The Penitent Magdalene exemplifies the early Renaissance portrayal of Mary Magdalene as the embodiment of sensual repentance. Draped in the loose flow of her golden hair, this piece showcases a hallmark of her past through a suggested moment of emotional and physical vulnerability. Her upward gaze and clasped hands suggest both remorse and immediate spiritual awakening. Inspired by the Gospel of Luke, the scene evokes the moment she washed Christ’s feet with the scented ointment jar placed to her left as she attempts to cover herself with her blonde locks, which evidently still leaves her exposed. Her nakedness, far from voyeuristic, symbolizes the first shedding of her sinful past. Titian paints a figure charged with femininity and emotional vulnerability with thick brushstrokes and warm tones.
Mary Magdalene in Ecstasy
Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, 1606
Oil on canvas, 40.75 × 36 in.
Kiran Nadar Museum of Art, Saket New Delhi
Caravaggio’s Mary Magdalene in Ecstasy marks a striking departure from the sensual penitence of Renaissance portrayals, embodying the start of the Baroque period techniques for dark and light contrasting. Caravaggio places Mary in a moment of pure, intimate transcendence with her head tilted back, eyes closed, lips parted, as if caught between the physical and divine. Through his signature use of chiaroscuro, the saint’s face and body emerge from darkness, amplifying her vulnerability and spiritual ecstasy, making her expression the immediate focal point. The ambiguity of her pose, part devotional and partly sensual, reflects the Baroque’s fascination with the boundary between body and soul. In this context, Caravaggio redefines Mary not as a cautionary figure covering herself, but as a conduit of divine grace and profound human experience.
The Temptation of Saint Mary Magdalen
Johann Liss, 1626
Oil on canvas, 38 7/8 × 49 1/2 in.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Object Number: 2020.220
Johann Liss’s interpretation of Mary Magdalene takes another perspective in his The Temptation of Saint Mary Magdalen to offer a dynamic Baroque examination of Mary Magdalene’s inner struggle between sin and salvation. The composition captures a tense, transitional moment as Mary is surrounded by earthly obstacles such as lavish jewelry and male figures enclosed on either side of her. Her turned gaze and, yet again, clasped hands signal a movement toward repentance and spiritual awakening. Most surprisingly, the skull lying within Mary’s grasp symbolizes death or repentance in life. Liss’ vivid color palette and usage of blues and reds create the dramatic contrasts of light and shadow, echoing the influence of Caravaggio’s chiaroscuro and the Baroque era’s focus on divine revelation through personal turmoil. In the context of this exhibition, this painting reveals how Baroque artists expanded Mary Magdalene’s image beyond simple penitence, portraying her instead as a woman in the throes of temptation and inner conflict.
The Penitent Magdalen
Georges de La Tour, 1640
Oil on canvas, 52 1/2 x 40 1/4 in.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Object Number: 1978.517
Georges de La Tour’s The Penitent Magdalen offers a hauntingly contemplative vision of Mary Magdalene that epitomizes the introspective spirituality of the Baroque era. Bathed in the soft, flickering light of a single candle, Mary sits alone in a sparse setting, her distant gaze pointed away from the viewer in solemn reflection, both spiritually and physically in the ornate mirror. A skull rests subtly in her lap while a mirror in front of her reflects not vanity, but the search for inner truth. Unlike the more overt drama and enticement of these contemporaries, La Tour’s use of chiaroscuro, inspired by Caravaggio, is quiet and meditative, drawing viewers into the stillness of her transformation. The emotional restraint and profound simplicity of this work allow for a deeply personal encounter with Mary’s repentance. Additionally, as seen in many other depictions, Mary is pregnant with a child. This visual symbol contrasts the impending doom of the skull in her lap to emphasize the delicate balance between life and death without the intercession of repentance in one’s life.
The Penitent Saint Mary Magdalen
Attributed to Giovanni Francesco Rustici, late 16th–early 17th century
Terracotta with remains of gesso and gilding, Height: 20 7/8 in.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Object Number: 16.32.156
This terracotta sculpture bridges the sensual humanism of the Renaissance with the growing spiritual fervor of the Baroque. Rendered with delicate realism and expressive detail, the figure exudes both vulnerability and grace in a 3D model. As a sculptural object, this piece invites a physical space and intimacy that painting cannot. Mary’s long flowing hair clothes her nakedness and surrounds the entirety of her body in a “costume” way. Moreover, the material utilized in terracotta mirrors a strong contrast of light and dark due to the shadows that subsume the figure instead of paint. The sculpture underscores the shifting attitudes toward female sanctity and embodiment, highlighting how Mary’s image was crafted in clay and touch, further deepening our understanding of her as a multidimensional figure of repentance, beauty, and spiritual transformation.
Mary Magdalene in Penitence in the Desert
Giuseppe Longhi, 1810
Engraving
Plate: 13 11/16 × 16 5/16 in.; Sheet: 14 3/16 × 16 5/8 in.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Object Number: 45.78.89
Giuseppe Longhi’s Mary Magdalene in Penitence in the Desert reflects a neoclassical interpretation of the saint that bridges the emotional intensity of the Baroque with
the refinement and restraint of early 19th-century religious art. Though produced after the Baroque period, this engraving preserves and reimagines the traditional iconography of Mary Magdalene as a solitary penitent, surrounded by familiar symbols of self-reflection, nudity, ointment jars, and wilderness. Her posture is relaxed and poised, her expression tame and content, to capture a more internalized and idealized vision of repentance. The engraving invites viewers to reflect on the continuity of Mary’s evolving narrative as her identity falls from once sorrowful to a contented repentance. This representation showcases the idealized version of a repentant woman who has already transcended into the spiritual state. Serving as a post-Baroque echo, Longhi illustrates Mary Magdalene’s image ,which has become deeply rooted in the Western imagination. Still evolving, yet embedded in centuries of spiritual and artistic legacy.
Resources:
Apostolos-Cappadona, Diane. Mary Magdalene: A Visual History. London: T&T Clark, 2023.
Carl, Klaus H.., Charles, Victoria. Baroque Art. United Kingdom: Parkstone International, 2009.
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