Artwork
Die Verleugnung Petri
Die Verleugnung Petri is an oil painting by the Early Baroque Italian artist Nicolas Tournier. It dates from 1614 and is held in the collection of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden.
About this work
Overview
Created in 1614, *Die Verleugnung Petri* is an oil painting that presents a tightly grouped assembly of figures around a central man cradling an infant. The composition is dominated by a stark contrast between illuminated foreground characters and a deep, shadowed background, a hallmark of early Baroque visual drama.
Subject & Meaning
The work portrays a biblical episode involving Peter, suggested by the title, though the exact moment is not specified in the surviving documentation. Central to the scene is a man in a red robe holding a baby, flanked by a woman with a white headscarf and a pointing male figure, while another woman tends a sleeping child, hinting at themes of denial, protection, and revelation.
Technique & Style
Tournier employs pronounced chiaroscuro, using strong light to model the figures against a dark setting, thereby enhancing spatial depth. Layers of impasto give the flesh and fabrics tactile presence, while glazing over certain areas creates a subtle glow, reflecting the influence of Caravaggist realism that the artist absorbed during his Roman period.
History & Provenance
Born in Montbéliard to a family of painters, Nicolas Tournier later spent several years in Rome (1619–1626), where he interacted with contemporaries such as Valentin de Boulogne and Bartolomeo Manfredi. After his Italian sojourn, the painting entered the collection of the Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, where it remains on display.
Context
The painting belongs to the early Italian Baroque movement, a time when artists emphasized dramatic lighting, emotional immediacy, and naturalistic detail. Tournier’s work reflects the cross‑cultural exchange between French and Italian artistic circles, integrating Caravaggio’s tenebrism with a French sensibility for narrative composition.
Artist & collection
Artist
Nicolas Tournier (baptised 12 July 1590 – d. before February 1639) was a French Baroque painter. Born in Montbéliard, he followed the profession of his father, André Tournier, "a Protestant painter from Besançon".…
Jacob Blessing the Sons of Joseph
El hijo pródigo
Saint John the Baptist says goodbye to his Parents
Christ among the Doctors
Introduction of Jacob to Isaac
Isaac Blessing Jacob
The Healing of Tobit
The Calling of St Matthew
The Denial of Saint Peter
Christ and the Woman Taken in Adultery
Saint Peter Denying Christ
St. Peter's release from prison by the angel