An artwork on Galleree from Minneapolis Institute of Art.
About the artwork
Salome with the Head of Saint John the Baptist1670s
Artist: Onorio Marinari
Italian, 1627 - 1715
rectangular frame with an octagonal opening; three standing figures, a male at left facing right holding the head of St. John's by the hair, a woman wearing a blue dress at right holding a silver tray with the head of St. John on it and Salome at center looking on wearing a white headdress with strands of pearls
56 × 50 × 3 in. (142.24 × 127 × 7.62 cm) (outer frame)
Oil on canvas
Painting
Italy
17th century
Gift of Curtis Galleries, Inc.
In a world where the echoes of laughter and music once filled a grand banquet hall, a young girl named Salome stood, caught in the unsettling whirlwind of her desires. Her beauty, like that of the finest porcelain, masked the dark depths of her heart. Beneath the shimmering chandeliers, King Herod, her stepfather, had just fulfilled a wish born out of her enchanting dance—a wish that would forever change the course of several lives.
As the guests applauded and marveled at Haydée's lithe movements, Salome’s young mind twisted between innocence and revenge. Amidst the glamour, she could hear the whispered tales of her mother, the queen, sulking in the shadows. The court was rife with gossip; John's voice had pierced through the fragile veneer of their world, condemning Salome's mother for her past misdeeds—the sins of adultery with Herod’s own brother.
Driven by her mother’s bitter instruction, Salome found herself clutching a gold plate, a grotesque trophy of her unholy wish—John the Baptist's severed head, severed and silenced. The juxtaposition of this gruesome offering against her delicate hands and ethereal attire was stark. The executioner, with his bare chest and rugged demeanor, stood as a jarring contrast to the beauty that enveloped mother and daughter like a silken cocoon, adorned in pearls and elaborate headpieces that seemed to shimmer even in the gloom of their reality.
In the midst of this dissonant beauty, Salome's expression revealed a haunting disquiet. Her head hung low, as if gravity itself had drawn her sorrow into its depths. It was as if the artist, in capturing this moment, had wanted to convey more than mere elegance; he sought to unveil the remorse that unfurled within the young girl. Her act, demanded by a mother’s bitter ambition, lingered heavily in the air— a chilling reminder that desires often come wrapped in unforeseen consequences.
As the echoes of the banquet faded into the distance, Salome stood in stark silence, the weight of her actions settling like a shroud over her beautiful form. In that moment, she was not merely a dancer celebrated for her grace, but a tragic figure poised at the edge of her youthful innocence, forever altered by a single, dark choice.
About the artist
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