Wasserman Reading Response One argument Jack Wasserman makes in this criticism of Pontormos painting in the Capponi Chapel

in Florence is that the painting depicts and expanded look at the Piet by showing a crowd bringing the corpse of Christ to a weeping Virgin Mary. I agree with this interpretation of the painting, especially considering the interpretations of other scholars where they stress Eucharistic imagery and the fact that Jesus is moving away from the Virgin rather than towards her. I feel as though Wasserman makes a really good point when he examines the preliminary drawing done by Pontormo in which the youth carrying the top half of Jesus body is more clearly shown moving to the right. This suggests that in the actual painting, even though the direction of the crowds movement is not completely clear, they are halted after moving toward the right, essentially bringing Jesus to Mary. This is how I interpreted the piece at first, so I was glad to read Wassermans breakdown of why this movement is apparent. Wasserman also backs up his claim that this is an expanded Piet narrative by noting that there is a path in the bottom left of the painting. I dont know if I agree with him about this or its supposed significance. I was a bit confused as to what he was trying to say about this path (which I have trouble seeing), and also didnt see how a paths existence helps support his theory that the narrative shows Jesus being carried toward the Virgin Mother. However it was interesting that he noted the possible backstories and meanings of the cloth the woman is holding in the middle as she offers it the Virgin Mary. The idea of an expanded narrative leading up to a Piet is also explored in terms of the iconography of the scene and earlier renditions using this iconography. I feel that Wassermans comparison of Fra Bartolommeos Deposition scene and its components parallels within the

Pontormo piece give substantial credibility to his interpretation of the scene as the presentation of Christs body to the Virgin that will become the Piet. I can see how the job of interpreting this painting by Pontormo is difficult given the ambiguity of which direction Jesus is moving, but Wasserman seems to make some very reasonable and logical points in his attempt to prove that this is a narrative scene of Jesus being brought to Mary after he has been taken down from the cross. One possibility that I dont think Wasserman considered was that perhaps Pontormo makes the direction of Christs movement a little ambiguous on purpose. I think this would make sense since given the context of the situation, it shouldnt matter whether this is before or after the Piet because Mary should be just as sad either way. I think the beauty in this painting is the mystery surrounding the sequencing of events. This way the viewer becomes more engaged in the painting and is allowed to come to his own conclusions. This interaction with the art probably made viewers feel more deeply connected with their faith, which is probably what artists like Pontormo who decorated these religious spaces would have wanted.