The Return of the Prodigal Son by Guercin in the Diocese Museum in Włocławek as an example of the post-Tridentine art

Abstract

In this article, the author discusses the work of Guercino Return of the Prodigal Son (1651), which is in the collection of the Museum of the Diocese of Włocławek. Pointing to the work as an example of artistic reflection, the author places it in the historical context of the post-Conciliar decree De invocatione, veneratione, et reliqvis sanctorum, et sacris imaginibus as well as in the context of the Bologna Treaty of Cardinal G. Paleotti Discorso intorno alle immagini sacre e profane, issued in 1582. In addition, he discusses the influence of the Bologna school on Guercino’s work. Based on many years of research by the British art historian J.D. Mahon, the author introduces the history and stylistics of the painting using the literature of the subject which has no equivalent in Polish.