Vatican Museums

During the years of the Second World War, Otto Dix developed a particular interest in the representation of religious subjects, and in particular in the episodes in the life of Christ and the Virgin. Kreuztragung belongs to this phase of accentuated mysticism: in contrast with his previous propensity towards a bitter language and violent visual impact, the artist prefers a more subdued expressive register. Tones are dampened and more pleasant images are constructed, as in this scene focused around the minute figure of St. Veronica, who is distinguished by the delicate pink colour of her robe. Although the overall tone is muted, Dix retains, however, his aims of moral condemnation of social injustice, delegating the role of narrative voice to the mimicry of the faces.