Leseprobe

106 Valentin de Boulogne Coulommiers 1591–1632 Rome The Cardsharps c. 1615/1618 Oil on canvas; 94.5×137 cm Acquired from the Imperial Gallery, Prague, in 1749 Gal. no. 408 With this scene of two young gamblers at a wooden table, we descend into the lowlife world of petty crime. Influenced by the style of the Caravaggisti, Valentin de Boulogne chose this popular subject because it lends itself to presenting a tense atmosphere in a tenebrist style. The two protagonists’ faces are illuminated, while their surroundings remain shrouded in darkness. Behind the player on the right, a rapier at his side, we see the hooded figure of an older man with a ruddy face who is indicating by hand sign the opponent player the value of the card to be played. The unsuspecting young man is still pondering his next move while coins glint on the table before him. The opponent on the left holds a card in his right hand out of sight. His leaning posture reveals that he is merely waiting his turn to lay down the winning card. By arranging the players in the immediate foreground and making the table edge seem to protrude into the viewer’s space, Valentin involves draws us into the action and uncover the conspiracy unfolding before our eyes. The figural composi- tion and fall of light underscore the choreography of gestures and the actions of concealment and disclosure. Although the figures’ faces are well enough defined to be portraits, in this moral tale they in fact embody archetypes of the greenish young man and the fraudster.  |  iyw