Flight Into Egypt, Carracci

Now housed in the Galleria Doria Pamphilj in Rome, this painting was created by Annibale Carracci, an Italian Baroque artist. It was one of six lunette paintings commissioned by a Cardinal to be displayed in his family chapel. In this painting, the natural landscape draws more of the audience's focus than the characters in the forefront. The emotion is not just in the posture of the people and our understanding of their movement away from the city, but also tied to the beauty of the land they are being forced to leave.