Crucifixion II

Ray Weight (loc. cit) comments of this work: 'This second Crucifixion is a far more intimate conception [than the earlier epic version of 1959]. An ornamental stream courses down from the left. Its surface reflects the head of the cross before bubbling turbulently out of the picture on the right. It is possible to distinguish the traditional actors at the foot of the cross. St. Longinus wears a German helmet; Mary, with eyes closed, clasps her white hair; the Magdalen, in red, turns away as if bemused in her grief. A priest, in his dark clerical clothes, prays ... Near him, approaching the reflected image in the water, a young girl hurries forward. Her pleasant, open face looks up compassionately at the unseen figure, contrasting with the clergyman's professional anguish. On the opposite bank sit a young couple with hands clasped. They are intent yet surprised, as if puzzled by the event. The two 'upper' panels are distinguished in various ways, yet the overriding impression is harmonious - of numerous individuals united in a shared experience on a piece of parkland or common familiar to them'.