Renaissance Inferno of the Italian Master Roberto Ferri

Roberto Ferri (b. 1978) is an acknowledged Italian artist who began as a self-taught painter. Since 1999, he studied the masters of different periods, from the 16th to 19th century, like Caravaggio, Ingre, and Bouguereau. In 2013, Ferri created 14 canvases for Via Crucis for the Cathedral of Noto, Syracuse. In 2014, Ferri performed two official portraits of His Holiness Pope Francis placed in the Governorate and the Sala della Consulta of the Vatican City. His work also appeared in The Man Who Sold His Skin movie (2020).

Inhuman Visions

The religious and mythological content of his works performed in an academic manner is impressive. We see gods, titans, heroes, and monsters as if painted by a skillful artist who lived centuries ago and was possessed by inhuman visions of ancient creatures that came out of Dante's Inferno.

Fig. 1. Roberto Ferri with his work, 2014.

Fig. 2. Via Crucis (instagram.com)

Fig. 3. The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, 2012.

Fig. 4. The Prison of Tears, 2009.

Fig. 5. Metamorphose, 2021.

Supreme Or Human Too Human

One distinctive feature of Ferri's oeuvres is his constant interest in the human body - the feature that he shares with Renaissance painters who focused on the bodies, limbs, and muscles, striving for perfection in depicting them. The metamorphoses of the flesh are the main subject of Ferri's art. In a broad sense, any possible pose of the artist's model depicted on a canvas shows us the process of transformation of the body with all its joints and curves. Conceptually, this interest leads Ferri to mythology and religion. Using the plots of Metamorphosis by Ovid (e. g. Arachne, 2013), Ferri realistically depicts the scene of a human turning into a spider or a serpent. Another source of naturalism is Christianity, which may seem paradoxical at first sight. Although this religion opposes itself to anything mundane, as known, martyrdom is a cornerstone of Christianity. There's a well-known legend about Michelangelo Buonarotti that he crucified his model to depict the passion of Christ realistically. Religious narratives allow Ferri to show the suffering flesh in his works.

Fig. 6. The Oracle, 2020.

Fig. 7. Apollo and Daphne, 2020.

Fig.8.  Arachne, 2013

Fig.9  The Keeper, 2019

Fig.10  The Dream of St. Eulalia, 2019

The Premium version of this article offers no less than 140 additional images, and examines Ferri's enthusiasm for the flesh and the aesthetics of Renaissance art, his work The Theatre of Cruelty, the influence of Michelangelo, the presence of Dante, and much more. Become a Premium member now and get access to this exclusive edition and 100s of articles not visible on the blog....!!

All images except for where the source is mentioned are taken from robertoferri.net.

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Sources: instagram.com, gwern.net