Rai5 pays tribute to Caravaggio and Tintoretto with two documentaries

On the 450th anniversary of the birth of Caravaggio (Michelangelo Merisi, Sept. 27, 1571), a new installment of Art Night will air in RAI premiere on Friday, Sept. 24 at 9:15 p.m. on Rai5. It begins with the documentary The Caravaggio Case, a fascinating investigation produced by Arte and reconstructed by director Frederic Biamonti, thanks to interviews with the world’s leading experts on the great artist.

In 2016, a depiction of Judith Beheading Holofernes was discovered by chance in the Toulouse Region. This resulted in considerable turmoil in the French and European art market and culture. The attribution of the painting to Caravaggio is hotly debated among specialists, and the French Ministry of Culture imposes an export ban. Public curiosity is intense, while the market watches with interest. Asking price 120 million euros, in the wake of the recent sale of a canvas attributed to Leonardo da Vinci, the Salvator Mundi, put up for sale with a starting price of $100 million and sold for $450 million in November 2017.
A new record would seem possible; how much could the recovery of the “new Caravaggio” fetch? Especially since it is much larger and in better condition than the Salvatori Mundi. In the offices of Eric Turquin, the Parisian art expert representing the painting’s owners, there are high hopes that the painting could become a trophy for a wealthy collector or a national treasure for a major museum. Either way, it is a groundbreaking work for art historians.

Through an investigation, this film tells the exceptional story of a painting by a great master, rediscovered after 400 years and shrouded in mystery.

Art Night continues with the documentary Tintoretto, the First Director. A restless painter, Tintoretto was capable of astounding his patrons with surprising gimmicks, thanks in part to the great speed with which he executed his works. Erminio Perocco ’s documentary is dedicated to him, tracing the artist’s biography and describing the technical innovations of his painting that exerted a profound and constant influence on the history of art, and left tangible traces in the works of artists such as Peter Paul Rubens, El Greco, Max Beckmann and Jackson Pollock. Paul Cezanne called him the idol of painting: “His work is immense, it includes everything from still life to God. He is a huge Noah’s ark; I would have moved to Venice just for him!”

Art Night is a program by Silvia De Felice and Massimo Favia and Marta Santella; directed by Andrea Montemaggiori.

Pictured: Judith and Holofernes, detail ©Cabinet Turquin

Rai5 pays tribute to Caravaggio and Tintoretto with two documentaries

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