Artwork
The Resurrection
The Resurrection is an oil painting by the Rococo painting artist Adriaen van der Werff. It dates from 1713 and is held in the collection of the Bavarian State Painting Collections.
About this work
Overview
Adriaen van der Werff’s *The Resurrection* (1713) is an oil painting that presents the biblical moment of Christ’s rising from the tomb. Executed in the early eighteenth century, the work resides in Munich’s Alte Pinakothek, reflecting the artist’s mature period when he turned to grand religious narratives after a career focused on portraiture and mythological subjects.
Subject & Meaning
The composition centers on a luminous, hair‑long figure ascending from a shadowy burial chamber, his arms outstretched in a gesture of triumph. Beneath him, a winged attendant and a robed figure labor to displace the stone sealing the tomb, while three onlookers lie on the floor, their gazes fixed upward, conveying awe and the transformative power of the resurrection event.
Technique & Style
Van der Werff employs a stark chiaroscuro, contrasting the radiant flesh of the central figure with the surrounding darkness to heighten drama. The delicate modeling of flesh and the soft rendering of drapery align the piece with Rococo sensibilities, yet the dramatic lighting and dynamic poses recall Baroque influences, creating a tension between elegance and theatricality.
History & Provenance
Painted shortly after van der Werff’s commissions for the Medici family, *The Resurrection* entered the Alte Pinakothek’s collection in the nineteenth century, where it has remained on public display. The work illustrates the artist’s later shift toward large‑scale religious subjects, a transition supported by his brother Pieter, who assisted and learned within his studio.
Artist & collection
Artist
Adriaen van der Werff (21 January 1659 – 12 November 1722) was a Dutch painter of portraits and erotic, devotional and mythological scenes.
Cupid Kissing Venus (Venus Kissed by Amor)
God Holds Adam and Eve Responsible
A Nymph Dancing to a Shepherd's Flute-Playing
The Holy Family
Bubble-blowing Girl with a Vanitas Still Life
Virgin and Child with Saint John (chalk sketch)
Self-portrait with the Portrait of his Wife, Margaretha van Rees, and their Daughter Maria
Portrait of Johann Wilhelm Elector of Palatine (1658-1716)