The Musicians (Caravaggio)

The Musicians is an oil-on-canvas painting by the Italian Baroque master Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, created circa 1595. It is housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

The painting depicts four young men, three of whom are playing musical instruments, while the fourth, a winged Cupid, reaches for grapes. The musicians are generally believed to be portraits of real individuals from Caravaggio's circle. One of the musicians, holding a lute, is often identified as a self-portrait of Caravaggio himself.

The composition is characteristic of Caravaggio's early style, featuring a focus on realistic detail and chiaroscuro, the dramatic use of light and shadow. The figures are rendered with a palpable sense of physicality and emotion. The painting explores themes of music, friendship, and the transience of youth, common in early Baroque art.

The painting's history is well-documented, and it was acquired by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1952. It is considered one of Caravaggio's important early works and a key example of his innovative approach to painting. Its influence can be seen in the work of many later artists.