s behind St. John. Another is Joseph of Arimathea wearing a turban and exotic clothing. Joseph of Arimathea clothing is the only clothing of that style in the painting.

This image serves as a teaching tool. During the time it was painted many people were illiterate and undereducated. This painting served as a way of teaching the bible, lamentation of Christ, to the people of the city or church. This image however does not do this by itself. The viewer must have knowledge of the bible in order to make the connection. The viewer would need to have preconceived notions of Christ’s life and the beginning of Christianity. David’s painting serves its function by visually explaining an event in the bible. It is not a story line but it is a scene painted from the bible. David ordered the objects and characters so that they could be easily interpreted.

There are many first responses to David’s painting discussed in the first paragraph. How David promotes these responses is shown throw the space, placement of the viewer, light, color, line and shape, and the composition. For example, David provides much depth in his painting. He illustrates an illusionistic 3-D boundless space. He does this by having objects (like the cross) leave the picture plane. He has characters touching, with some in front of others and some behind others. He places the city of Jerusalem behind the main scene. He g

Some topics in this essay:
Joseph Arimathea, St Johns, Christ David, Mary Christ, John Christ, Christianity David’s, Gerard David’s, , viewer’s attention, attention foreground, david promotes, allows viewer, promotes responses, St John, david promotes responses, foreground david, st john, foreground david lines, viewer background, joseph arimathea, viewer’s attention drawn, viewer notices, viewer notices bright, allows viewer painting,