Analysis Of The Painting The Penitent Magdalen By Georges De La Tour

French painter Georges de La Tour (1593-1652) realized The Penitent Magdalen around 1640, an oil on canvas now on view at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The painting, which is 133.4 by 102.2 centimeters, depicts a young woman, Magdalen, sitting in front of a table with her face turned towards a burning candle flame. The body of Magdalen occupies a large space of the canvas, but La Tour paid specific attention to place several symbolic objects next to subject. The general scene which yet only represents a woman sitting still and taking care of herself, is represented by La Tour in such a way that it plunges viewers in deep meditation.

Georges de La Tour’s purposeful use of lighting and display of symbols creates a mirror-like effect so that the viewers embody the role of the meditative Magdalen. The painting showcases an alluring Magdalen meditating upon a burning candle whose flame is reflected in a mirror. The young woman is sitting in front of a table, her neck tense revealed by her face turned away. The general scene is composed in hues of browns and blacks thus isolating the subject who stands out thanks to shades of whites, yellows, golds and the catchy red of the fabric of her skirt. La Tour decided to portray the figure attired in a white shirt. He manages to accentuate the folded aspect of the shirt by playing with different hues of whites which confound with Magdalen’s milky skin tone. The subject’s shirt is informal and coarse showing that she was not thinking of personal embellishment when she put it on. Conversely, the long, illuminated red skirt that covers Magdalen’s feet is made of a heavier and smoother material. It surrounds the waist as to reveal the contours of the young woman’s body.

The young woman’s actual face is not rendered by La Tour; only a few parts of the profile of Magdalen are depicted – the extremity of an eye and its lashes, two parted lips and the peak of the nose, leaving the rest to the viewer’s imagination. By turning away her face, Magdalen displays the whole length of her well brushed silky black hair which falls on her shoulders. La Tour carefully renders Magdalen’s complexion by revealing a porcelain white skin. Similarly, the way La Tour represents Magdalen’s fingers is extremely delicate so that her flesh is comparable to the wax of a candle. Magdalen seems to be in deep contemplation, her gaze fixed on the long flame which sheds light on her face. On the table next to her, the young woman possesses a rather large gold mirror with gilded ornaments that suggests an affluent life. Her half-opened mouth indicates that she might be talking to someone; this someone may be God as her hands in prayer suggest. Indeed, religion is a pregnant element of the composition.

La Tour plays with several religious references: the immaculate whiteness of the shirt and the complexion could symbolize purity, dignity or prudishness. Elements of humility and recollection are also implied by the way Magdalen holds her hands over the skull; the memento mori itself being an important object of piety. Magdalen’s hands posture over the hollowness could also be interpreted as a sign of acceptance of death.

La Tour paid particular attention to the aspects of simplicity and purity in the depiction of the scene. The deprivation of the space and the unvarnished model participate in making this scene a realist one. There is a strong sense of calm and quietude that resonates from this painting: the young woman seems very serene and even melancholic. Her straight posture emits some kind of elegance and sophistication. Even though Magdalen is frugally dressed, the light draws viewers to her pondering face which looks at the mirror that is set before her. In the foreground are laying on the floor, next to the subject’s feet, some pieces of jewelry which she seems to have gotten rid of. Thrown on the floor, these precious objects give the impression to have lost all their intrinsic value to the young woman who has found another source of wealth, directed by the candle flame. On the right side of the background, laid down on the table next to the gilded mirror, can be found another pearl necklace. But Magdalen’s fingers on the skull suggest how little interest these jewelries seem to have. In La Tour’s art, Magdalen is showed as pensive, and such profound contemplation is intriguing. The motif of absence is haunting La Tour’s painting: like a ghost, Magdalen does not cast a reflection on the mirror. Surprisingly, what prevails is the candle flame, rendered on two occasions through its reflection in the mirror.

The candle flame and its reflection seem to be La Tour’s central motive as confirmed by the original French title, “La Madeleine aux deux flammes”. In fact, the candle flame appears to be the focal point intended by La Tour. The light made by the flame illuminates Magdalen’s very intended white shirt and her cleavage forming a triangle. The apron of her skirt is made of a brilliant red with a gold edging that offsets the nocturnal atmosphere of the scene. La Tour creates an interesting effect playing with the stark contrast between the darkness of the ambient scene and the light shed on the silhouette. Though Magdalen is illuminated by the flame coming from the right and following a diagonal line, her surrounding is subdued. The foreground is bathed by the shadow of the body. The background on which lays the mirror is equally plunged into darkness as well as what it reflects, fading with little definition. Only the candle and Magdalen are made clearly visible and in the same way that the candle is burning with light, Magdalen is glowing from the waist up.

Viewing La Tour’s painting is not immediate, we have to move up and down the canvas to assess every element, but the first reception is unanimous: the candle flame is the thing to concentrate on. It is white and long with a cone of black in its core. But more than the flame itself, the painter invites us into Magdalen’ internal world. The character is physically present but seems to escape us. Locked in her internal world, is the subject regretting her past life as suggested by the title? Is she in a quest for faith? Magdalen is so absorbed by the candle light that the viewer lives the same experience in front the painting, forced by La Tour to enter in a period of contemplation.