\paperw19995 \margr0\margl0 \plain \fs20 \f1 This painting is a work from TitianÆs later years. It illustrates the story of Lucretia, a Roman patrician considered the w
isest of the cityÆs women, who was raped by Tarquin and subsequently killed herself. Titian chooses to depict the climax of the story: Tarquin is threatening Lucretia with a knife, while the woman struggles, in a final attempt to defend herself.\par
Th
e scene is set in an enclosed space, decorated with heavily shaded red drapery that helps to accentuate the drama of the event.\par
Like all of TitianÆs later works, the color appears to scatter in the light: the paint is applied in rapid and broken str
okes that perforate the outlines of the figures and objects. The moving light, which plays chiefly on the figure of Lucretia, and the fluid and impetuous brushwork soften the drawing and remove any trace of plasticity. The painting is reduced to the ro
ugh layer of paint applied to the canvas in clear strokes.\par
The rich coloring and patterns of light and shade effectively convey the upheaval of the protagonistsÆ emotions: the darkness and density of the pigment used to give Tarquin a negative conno
tation is countered by the diaphanous light that renders the innocent figure of Lucretia immaterial.
