Focus on Bacchus (Caravaggio) and discuss the Other versions.
Young Sick Bacchus (c. 1593) is another image of Bacchus done by Caravaggio for the Borghese family. The model for this portrait is also believed to be the same model used in Bacchus (c. 1595). Unlike the later version, this version Bacchus' skin appears jaundiced and his body is positioned away from the viewer. Again, it is unclear if the model is Caravaggio himself or his pupil Mario Minniti. This version shows Caravaggio's interest in tenebrism. The background remains dark while the subject looks like they are under a spotlight, creating a dramatic effect forcing the viewer to focus on one aspect of the scene. Unlike the later Bacchus, this depiction focuses on the decay of Bacchus himself rather than the decay of decadence. There is another version of Young Sick Bacchus by Caravaggio (c. 1593) at the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica in Rome. The title is Self-portrait as Bacchus, but the image is almost the same as the Borghese version.
tenebrism Borghese Caravaggio Bacchus Young Sick Bacchus Mario Minniti