In Democritus (Ribera), how is the Description and style discussed?
The philosopher is portrayed half-length, dressed as a beggar and holding a compass with his right hand, while with his left he holds some papers where some geometric symbols are represented. On the spine of the book, lower right, the signature and the date are written, "Jusepe de Ribera español / F 1630". The painting is cropped on the right side.
His smiling face with deep wrinkles and his bony long-fingered hands are the focus of the composition and are rendered with great fidelity and great naturalism. A light enters from the left, bathing the philosopher's body, which together with a halo of lighter paint around the head and the neutral background highlights him, giving the composition a greater perspective and realism. It is believed that Ribera had a model pose for the picture, possibly someone anonymous found on the street, whom he portrayed as if he were a nobleman or a king.
Nícola Spinosa defines it in the study of his work: "A true portrait of any peasant found in the alleys of viceregal Naples, in which the painter knew how to capture precisely the signs of the ancient Greco-Levantine origin, inserted in a context of irreducible vitality and typically Mediterranean humanity."
Jusepe de Ribera