The LRB Podcast Caravaggio’s Bodies
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Mar 4, 2026 Erin McGlachy, historian of dress and the body at Durham University, explores Caravaggio’s use of real Roman street models and his gritty portrayals of flesh, clothing and dirt. Short, vivid scenes, violent moments and off‑centre framing make his paintings unnerving. The conversation traces patrons’ reactions, staging of nudity, clothing as social code and how light and drapery shape identity.
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Unnerving Realism And Viewer Complicity
- Caravaggio's paintings balance intense involvement with disturbing realism that makes viewers feel complicit.
- Emmaus and other works press figures and objects to the picture plane, using foreshortening and grotesque details like a desiccated roast chicken to unsettle viewers.
Patrons Rejected Paintings For Being Too Ordinary
- Patrons often rejected Caravaggio's commissioned religious paintings because they breached decorum by using ordinary people and sex workers as models.
- The Madonna of Loreto and the Palafreniere Madonna were hung then quickly taken down for obvious dirtied feet, cleavage, or vernacular modeling.
Rome's Violent Nightlife Shaped His Art
- Rome's late 16th-century urban landscape shaped Caravaggio: a male-dominated, violent, cosmopolitan city where shadows sheltered the underworld.
- Criminal records and police reports complement the paintings, revealing his brawling life and the city's dangerous nighttime culture.