08 Paintings, scenes from the Bible, by The Old Masters, with footnotes # 42

Hieronymus Bosch (circa 1450–1516)
Triptych of the crucified Martyr, circa 1497-1505
Oil on panel
Height: 104 cm (40.9 in). Width: 119 cm (46.9 in).
Doge's Palace, Venice

The central panel depicts the crucifixion of a saint usually identified with Saint Julia of Corsica (sometimes with Saint Wilgefortis). In a depiction related to Christ's crucifixion, the centrally themed woman is in an elevated position against the sky, balanced by a large crowd gathered at the foot of the cross, including executioners and common people. A typical element is the fainting man supported by his neighbors.

The sides show two cities: at right, a port characterized by fanciful domed buildings and several sunken ships; at left is city on fire, occupied by demons. At the bottom are several parapets, with, at left, a hermit with a dark hood (perhaps St. Anthony in Meditation), and, at right, a monk and a soldier who point at the central panel, traditionally identified as slave-dealers. More about the painting

Hieronymus Bosch, (circa 1450–1516)
Triptych of the crucified Martyr, circa 1497-1505
Detail, Left Panel


Saint Julia of Corsica, also known as Saint Julia of Carthage, and more rarely Saint Julia of Nonza, was a virgin martyr who is venerated as a Christian saint. The date of her death is most probably on or after AD 439. 

Saint Julia was a noble virgin of Carthage, who, when the city was taken by Genseric in 439, was sold for a slave to a pagan merchant of Syria. In the most mortifying employments of her station, by cheerfulness and patience she found a happiness and comfort which the world could not give. Whenever she was not employed in household affairs, her time was devoted to prayer and reading books of piety.

Hieronymus Bosch, (circa 1450–1516)
Triptych of the crucified Martyr, circa 1497-1505
Detail

Her master, who was charmed with her fidelity and other virtues, thought proper to take her with him on one of his voyages to Gaul. When he reached the northern part of Corsica, he cast anchor and went ashore to join the pagans of the place in an idolatrous festival. Julia was left at some distance, because she would not be defiled by the superstitious ceremonies, which she openly spurned. The governor of the island, Felix, a bigoted pagan, asked who this woman was who dared to insult the gods. The merchant informed him that she was a Christian, and that all his authority over her was too weak to prevail upon her to renounce her religion; nonetheless, he found her so diligent and faithful he could not part with her. The governor offered him four of his best slaves in exchange for her. But the merchant replied, No; all you are worth will not purchase her; for I would lose the most valuable thing I have in the world rather than be deprived of her.

Hieronymus Bosch, (circa 1450–1516)
Triptych of the crucified Martyr, circa 1497-1505
Detail, Right Panel

Nonetheless Felix, while the inebriated merchant was asleep, attempted to compel her to sacrifice to his gods. He offered to procure her liberty if she would comply. The Saint made answer that she was as free as she desired to be, as long as she was allowed to serve Jesus Christ. The pagan, offended by her undaunted and resolute air, in a transport of rage caused her to be struck on the face, and the hair of her head to be torn off. Finally he ordered her to be hanged on a cross until she expired. Certain monks from the isle of Gorgon transported her relics there, but in 763 the king of Lombardy transferred them to Brescia, where her memory is celebrated with great devotion. More Saint Julia 

Hieronymus Bosch (c. 1450 – 9 August 1516) was an Early Flemish painter. His work is known for its fantastic imagery, detailed landscapes, and illustrations of religious concepts and narratives. Within his lifetime his work was collected in the Netherlands, Austria, and Spain, and widely copied, especially his macabre and nightmarish depictions of hell.
Little is known of Bosch's life, though there are some records. He spent most of it in the town of 's-Hertogenbosch, where he was born in his grandfather's house. The roots of his forefathers are in Aachen, in present-day Germany. His pessimistic and fantastical style cast a wide influence on northern art of the 16th century, with Pieter Bruegel the Elder being his best known follower. His paintings have been difficult to translate from a modern point of view; attempts to associate instances of modern sexual imagery with fringe sects or the occult have largely failed. Today he is seen as a hugely individualistic painter with deep insight into humanity's desires and deepest fears. Attribution has been especially difficult; today only about 25 paintings are confidently given to his hand along with 8 drawings. Approximately another half dozen paintings are confidently attributed to his workshop. His most acclaimed works consist of a few triptych altarpieces, the most outstanding of which is The Garden of Earthly Delights. More Hieronymus Bosch

Gabriel von Max, (1840–1915)
Saint Julia (also called „Crucified Martyress“), c. 1866
 Oil on canvas
125x93 cm
Hermitage Museum.

This painting of Saint Julia was Gabriel von Max's first great success. It shows Saint Julia of Corsica  on the cross. Beneath her is a man with roses in his hand, who apparently reveres her. There is a red gemstone on each shoe.


Saint Julia of Corsica, also known as Saint Julia of Carthage, and more rarely Saint Julia of Nonza, was a virgin martyr who is venerated as a Christian saint. The date of her death is most probably on or after AD 439. 

Saint Julia was a noble virgin of Carthage, who, when the city was taken by Genseric in 439, was sold for a slave to a pagan merchant of Syria. In the most mortifying employments of her station, by cheerfulness and patience she found a happiness and comfort which the world could not give. Whenever she was not employed in household affairs, her time was devoted to prayer and reading books of piety.

Her master, who was charmed with her fidelity and other virtues, thought proper to take her with him on one of his voyages to Gaul. When he reached the northern part of Corsica, he cast anchor and went ashore to join the pagans of the place in an idolatrous festival. Julia was left at some distance, because she would not be defiled by the superstitious ceremonies, which she openly spurned. The governor of the island, Felix, a bigoted pagan, asked who this woman was who dared to insult the gods. The merchant informed him that she was a Christian, and that all his authority over her was too weak to prevail upon her to renounce her religion; nonetheless, he found her so diligent and faithful he could not part with her. The governor offered him four of his best slaves in exchange for her. But the merchant replied, No; all you are worth will not purchase her; for I would lose the most valuable thing I have in the world rather than be deprived of her.


Nonetheless Felix, while the inebriated merchant was asleep, attempted to compel her to sacrifice to his gods. He offered to procure her liberty if she would comply. The Saint made answer that she was as free as she desired to be, as long as she was allowed to serve Jesus Christ. The pagan, offended by her undaunted and resolute air, in a transport of rage caused her to be struck on the face, and the hair of her head to be torn off. Finally he ordered her to be hanged on a cross until she expired. Certain monks from the isle of Gorgon transported her relics there, but in 763 the king of Lombardy transferred them to Brescia, where her memory is celebrated with great devotion. More Saint Julia 

Gabriel Cornelius Ritter von Max (ennobled in 1900; 23 August 1840 – 24 November 1915) was a Prague-born Austrian painter, the son of the sculptor Josef Max and Anna Schumann. He studied at the Prague Academy of Arts. His studies included parapsychology, Darwinism, Asiatic philosophy, the ideas of Schopenhauer, and various mystical traditions. He continued his studies at the Viennese Academy of Art. From 1863 to 1867 he studied at the Munich Academy. His first critical success was in 1867 with the painting "Martyr at the Cross": that painting transformed the "Unglücksmalerei" (dark palette) of Piloty into a religious-mystical symbolism using a psychological rendering of its subject.

He continued to use the dark palette of the Piloty school well into the 1870s, later moving toward a more muted palette, using fewer, clearer colors. From 1869, Gabriel von Max had his studio in Munich. From 1879-1883, Gabriel Max was a professor of Historical Painting at the Munich Academy; he also became a Fellow of The Theosophical Society. In 1900 he was ennobled and became a Ritter. He died in Munich in 1915. More Gabriel von Max

Giovanni Battista Lenardi, (Italy, 1656-1704)
The Assumption of the Virgin with Saints Anne and Nicholas of Myra, c. 1690
Oil on canvas
100 × 66 in. (254 × 167.64 cm)
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art

Although this large and impressive altarpiece was thought to be the work of Domenichino when it first surfaced on the art market in 1978, it was identified prior to its sale by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2003 as the work that Giovanni Battista Lenardi completed for the church of San Giuseppe dei Falegnami in Rome.  The work was installed in the left chapel of the church in 1690, when records show that the artist's brother Pietro Paolo was paid for making adjustments to it. 

In 1855, the altarpiece was replaced with a copy of Carlo Maratti's Flight into Egypt, although it appears that Lenardi's painting remained in the church in another location until at least 1929.  The prominent depiction of Saint Nicholas of Myra in his distinctly "Greek" costume makes the association of this altarpiece with the one described in Filippo Titi's study of Rome's churches a virtual certainty (see Literature).   Lenardi, whose oeuvre has only recently begun to be comprehensively studied, was a student of Pietro da Cortona and Lazzaro Baldi. More 

Ilya Repin, Russian, 1844–1930
Golgotha, 1921–22
Oil on reversed linoleum
214 x 176 cm (84 1/4 x 69 5/16 in.)
Princeton University Art Museum

Repin’s Golgotha offers a starkly uncon­ventional interpretation of familiar subject matter. It is a Crucifixion without Christ, whose body has already been removed from the place of execution, leaving yawning emptiness at the center of the painting. Two dead thieves remain, tied to their crosses. A third cross rests on the ground, its nails, its crossbar, and the surrounding area saturated with Christ’s blood. With brutal realism, Repin depicts a pack of carrion dogs licking the blood; one, positioned at the foot of the empty cross, looks out of the painting as if in response to the viewer’s presence. More Golgotha

Ilya Yefimovich Repin (5 August 1844 – 29 September 1930) was the most renowned Russian artist of the 19th century. He played a major role in bringing Russian art into the mainstream of European culture. His major works include Barge Haulers on the Volga (1873), Religious Procession in Kursk Province (1883) and Reply of the Zaporozhian Cossacks (1880–91).

Repin was born in Chuguyev, in the Kharkov Governorate (now Ukraine) of the Russian Empire into a military family. He entered military school in 1854 and in 1856 studied under Ivan Bunakov, a local icon painter. He began to paint around 1860. In 1874–1876 he showed at the Salon in Paris and at the exhibitions of the Itinerants' Society in Saint Petersburg. He was awarded the title of academician in 1876.

In 1901 he was awarded the Legion of Honour. In 1911 he traveled to the World Exhibition in Italy, where his painting 17 October 1905 and his portraits were displayed in their own separate room. In 1916 Repin worked on his book of reminiscences, Far and Near. He welcomed the Russian Revolution of 1917. Celebrations were held in 1924 in Kuokkala to mark Repin's 80th birthday, followed by an exhibition of his works in Moscow. In 1925 a jubilee exhibition of his works was held in the Russian Museum in Leningrad. Repin died in 1930 and was buried at the Penates. More

Attributed to Johan Maelwael (Jean Malouel). (Nijmegen, c. 1370 - Dijon, 1415), 
La Grande Pietà ronde, c. 1400
Oil on Wood
Musée du Louvre

The Pietà is a subject in Christian art depicting the Virgin Mary cradling the dead body of Jesus, most often found in sculpture. As such, it is a particular form of the Lamentation of Christ, a scene from the Passion of Christ found in cycles of the Life of Christ. When Christ and the Virgin are surrounded by other figures from the New Testament, the subject is strictly called a Lamentation in English, although Pietà is often used for this as well, and is the normal term in Italian. More the Pietà

Jean Malouel, or Jan Maelwael in his native Dutch, (c. 1365 – 1415) was a Netherlandish artist, sometimes classified as French, who was the court painter of Philip the Bold, Duke of Burgundy and his successor John the Fearless, working in the International Gothic style.

He was presumably born in Nijmegen, then in the Duchy of Guelders, which was bought by Philip the Bold in 1473, and is in the modern Netherlands. He probably trained there in the workshop of his father, the artist Willem Maelwael, and is recorded as an artist in 1382. He was the uncle of the famous manuscript illuminators, the three Limbourg brothers, whom he introduced to Philip's service around 1400. 


Malouel is recorded as working in Paris painting armorial decorations on cloth for Isabelle of Bavaria, Queen of France, in 1396–97, but by August 1397 he was in Dijon, the capital of the Duchy of Burgundy, where he succeeded Jean de Beaumetz (d. 1396) to the position of court painter to Philip. He retained these positions until his death.] In 1405, soon after the death of Philip, he returned to Nijmegen to marry Heilwig van Redinchaven, bringing her back to Dijon3. In 1415 he died in Dijon, leaving Heilwig and four children. She received a pension from the Duke, and returned to Nijmegen, where she became involved in lengthy litigation over Malouel's estate there. More on Johan Maelwael

Henri Bellechose, (1415–1440)
Altarpiece of St Denis in Paris
The Last Communion and Martyrdom of Saint Denis, c. 1416
Tempera and gold on canvas mounted on panel
162 × 211 cm (63.8 × 83.1 in)
Louvre Museum

Saint Denis was a legendary 3rd-century Christian martyr and saint. He was bishop of Paris in the third century. He suffered under the persecution of the emperor Decius shortly after ad 250. Denis is the most famous cephalophore in Christian legend, with a popular story claiming that the decapitated bishop picked up his head and walked several miles while preaching a sermon on repentance. He is venerated in the Catholic Church as the patron saint of France and Paris and is accounted one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers. A chapel was raised at the site of his burial by a local Christian woman; it was later expanded into an abbey and basilica, around which grew up the French city of Saint-Denis, now a suburb of Paris. Saint Denis

More on Basilica of Saint Denis 

Henri Bellechose (fl. 1415; died before 28 January 1445) was from the South Netherlands. He was one of the most significant artists at the beginning of panel painting in Northern Europe, and among the earliest artists of Early Netherlandish painting.

Bellechose was an artist who came to Dijon to work for the Dukes of Burgundy. There he was appointed court painter to John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy and "valet de chambre", a court appointment, as his predecessor Jean Malouel and successor Jan van Eyck were. Nothing is known of his career before this, and it has been suggested that he had been working as Malouel's assistant for some time, and for some art historians their oeuvres are closely entangled.

His famous Martyrdom of Saint Denis (above) in the Louvre, was commissioned by the Duke for the Chartreuse of Champmol in Dijon, founded by Philip the Bold as a dynastic burial place. The pigments to "parfaire" an image of the "Life of St Denis", but interestingly not any gold for the background, were advanced by the Duchy in May 1415. This has led to the suggestion that the work had been left incomplete by Malouel.

In April 1420, when John the Fearless died, Bellechose was retained by his successor, Philip the Good. The works recorded in the accounts of the Duke were mostly decorative, including commissions such as coats of arms for funerals, as was normal for court artists, but two altarpieces, neither apparently surviving, were commissioned in 1425 and 1429. Bellechose had a large studio which at its peak consisted of eight assistants and two apprentices. More on Henri Bellechose

Emil Nolde, 1867 - 1956
Die Grablegung (Begravelsen, The Burial), c. 1915
Oil on canvas
87 x 117 cm, Stiftung Nolde, Seebüll
Nasjonalmuseet, National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design, Norway

The burial of Jesus refers to the burial of the body of Jesus after crucifixion, described in the New Testament. According to the canonical gospel accounts, he was placed in a tomb by a man named Joseph of Arimathea.

The earliest reference is in a letter of Paul. He refers to the account he had received of the death and resurrection of Jesus ("and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures").

The next generation of writings are the four canonical gospels, written between 66 and 95CE, all of which conclude with an extended narrative of Jesus' arrest, trial, crucifixion, burial, and resurrection. All four state that, on the evening of the Crucifixion, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body, and, after Pilate granted his request, he wrapped it in a linen cloth and laid it in a tomb.More of The Burial

Emil Nolde (born Emil Hansen; 7 August 1867 – 13 April 1956) was a German-Danish painter and printmaker. He was one of the first Expressionists, a member of Die Brücke, and was one of the first oil painting and watercolor painters of the early 20th century to explore color. He is known for his brushwork and expressive choice of colors. Golden yellows and deep reds appear frequently in his work, giving a luminous quality to otherwise somber tones. His watercolors include vivid, brooding storm-scapes and brilliant florals. More Emil Nolde 




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10 Icons from the Bible, with footnotes, #16

Italian School, 19th century, in the manner of a Trecento work
THE MADONNA AND CHILD
Oil and gold ground on poplar panel
47.2 x 29.6 cm.; 18 5/8  x 11 5/8  in.
Private collection

The Trecento refers to the 14th century in Italian cultural history. Commonly the Trecento is considered to be the beginning of the Renaissance in art history. Painters of the Trecento included Giotto di Bondone, as well as painters of the Sienese School, which became the most important in Italy during the century, including Duccio di Buoninsegna, Simone Martini, Lippo Memmi, Ambrogio Lorenzetti and his brother Pietro. Important sculptors included two pupils of Giovanni Pisano: Arnolfo di Cambio and Tino di Camaino, and Bonino da Campione. More on Trecento

Italian School, probably Marchigian, circa 1400
THE MADONNA AND CHILD
Tempera and gold ground on poplar panel in an engaged frame
50.5 x 33 cm.; 19 7/8  x 13 in.
Private collection

Italian School, 14th century
THE CRUCIFIXION WITH THE VIRGIN, MARY MAGDALENE AND SAINT JOHN
Tempera and gold ground on poplar panel
86 x 52.4 cm.; 33 7/8  x 20 5/8  in.
Private collection

Mary Magdalene,  literally translated as Mary the Magdalene or Mary of Magdala, is a figure in Christianity who, according to the Bible, traveled with Jesus as one of his followers. She is said to have witnessed Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection. Within the four Gospels she is named more than most of the apostles. Based on texts of the early Christian era in the third century, it seems that her status as an “apostle" rivals even Peter's.

The Gospel of Luke says seven demons had gone out of her. She is most prominent in the narrative of the crucifixion of Jesus, at which she was present. She was also present two days later when, she was, either alone or as a member of a group of women, the first to testify to the resurrection of Jesus. John 20 and Mark 16:9 specifically name her as the first person to see Jesus after his resurrection.

During the Middle Ages, Mary Magdalene was regarded in Western Christianity as a repentant prostitute or promiscuous woman, claims not found in any of the four canonical gospels. More Mary Magdalene

John the Apostle ( c. AD 6 – c. 106) was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus according to the New Testament. He was the son of Zebedee and Salome. His brother was James, who was another of the Twelve Apostles. Christian tradition holds that he outlived the remaining apostles and that he was the only one not to die a martyr's death (excluding Judas Iscariot who died by suicide). The Church Fathers considered him the same person as John the Evangelist, John of Patmos, John the Elder and the Beloved Disciple, although modern theologians and scholars have not formed a consensus on the relative identities of these men. The tradition of most Christian denominations holds that John the Apostle is the author of several books of the New Testament. More John the Apostle

Italian School, 14th century. During the 1200s a new format for painting—the altarpiece—appeared in Italian churches. Previously, fresco and mosaic decoration were predominant, and Western artists did not often paint on wooden panels

Italian artists working in this new medium turned for inspiration to the Christian East, adapting the techniques, style, and subject matter of Byzantine icons, devotional images whose backgrounds are dematerialized with shimmering gold and whose figures often appear timeless and remote. But church decoration in the West was also meant to instruct the faithful, which fostered less static styles. New religious orders, especially the Franciscans, who emphasized the human life of holy figures, prompted artists to capture the world of everyday experience with greater verisimilitude.

The Florentine Giotto is usually credited with first capturing the weight and mass of bodies in space, making them three-dimensional with light and shadow. He abandoned the decorative pattern and complicated line of Byzantine art for heavier, simpler forms and animated his figures with genuine human motivations. His innovations did not proceed uninterrupted, however, and after mid-century Florentine painters like Orcagna returned to a more ornate and less naturalistic style. More Italian School, 14th century

Circle of Quinten Massys
THE VIRGIN AND CHILD
oil on oak panel
60.5 x 44.9 cm.; 23 3/4  x 17 5/8  in.
Private collection

Quinten Massys, 1465/6 - 1530. Massys was the leading painter in Antwerp in the early 16th century. He was born in Louvain and his earliest works show the influence of Memling, who had been active in Bruges. His later works show some Italian influence, particularly that of Leonardo. He was notable as a portraitist as well as a religious painter.

Massys is first recorded in Antwerp, on becoming a member of the guild there in 1491, when the town was beginning to assume importance as the main port of the Netherlands. There are dated and datable paintings by Massys from 1509 onwards, the year of the completion of his altarpiece of the 'Legend of Saint Anna' (now in the Brussels Museum).

In Antwerp, Massys was closely associated with Joachim Patinir, and seems to have supplied figures for his landscapes. More Quinten Massys,

Manner of Tommaso del Mazza, called the master of St. Verdiana
A PORTABLE TRIPTYCH SHOWING THE MADONNA AND CHILD ENTHRONED WITH SAINTS, WITH THE ANNUNCIATION AND CRUCIFIXION DEPICTED ON THE WINGS
Oil on panel, gold ground, pointed tops
central panel: 89.5 x 34.6 cm.; 35 1/4  x 13 5/8  in.
wings, each: 68.9 x 17.3 cm.; 27 1/8  x 6 7/8  in.
Private collection

The Virgin Enthroned symbolizes the mystery of the incarnation of Christ made man and the glory of the Mother of God. This justifies the intense expression of the countenances, the solemn attitudes of the Saints present at the glory of the Mother of God, the awed attention of the Archangels who "behold" the mystery of the incarnation. More The Virgin Enthroned

The Annunciation is the Christian celebration of the announcement by the angel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary that she would conceive and become the mother of Jesus, the Son of God.

According to Luke 1:26, the Annunciation occurred "in the sixth month" of Elizabeth's pregnancy. Many Christians observe this event with the Feast of the Annunciation on 25 March, an approximation of the northern vernal equinox nine full months before Christmas, the ceremonial birthday of Jesus. In England, this came to be known as Lady Day. It marked the new year until 1752. The 2nd-century writer Irenaeus of Lyon regarded the conception of Jesus as 25 March coinciding with the Passion. More The Annunciation

Crucifixion is a historical method of capital punishment in which the victim is tied or nailed to a large wooden beam and left to hang for several days until eventual death from exhaustion and asphyxiation. It is principally known from classical antiquity, but remains in occasional use in some countries. 

The crucifixion of Jesus is a central narrative in Christianity, and the cross (sometimes depicting Jesus nailed onto it) is the main religious symbol for many Christian churches. More Crucifixion

Tommaso del Mazza, known as the Master of Saint Verdiana (active 1377 - 1392), worked in the late Gothic style at the dawn of the Renaissance in Florence. In his early career, during the 1370s, he was active in the workshop of Andrea Orcagna, whose work featured gold backgrounds, attention to the picture's surface, and brilliant colors. Showing no compulsion to render a scene in realistic detail, del Mazza allowed the needs of the theme and their inherent symbolism to determine his stylized approach to painting. In the 1390s he became an independent artist. More Tommaso del Mazza

South Netherlandish School, second quarter of the 16th century
THE VIRGIN AND CHILD ON A CRESCENT MOON
Oil on oak panel, with an arched top, in an integral frame
Painted surface: 33 x 22.8 cm.; 13 x 9 in. 
Overall: 41 x 31 cm.; 16 1/8  x 12 1/4  in.
Private collection

The depiction of the Madonna on the crescent is based on the vision of John the Evangelist in chapter 12 of Revelation, the final book of the New Testament (here, the King James version):

1 And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:
2 And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.
3 And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.
4 And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.

5 And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne. More

The depiction of the back of the Virgin and Child, with the two figures looking over their shoulders, is particularly rare in Western art. There are only three other examples of this type recorded in the database of the RKD, The Hague, both anonymous and dated to the same period as the present panel. More on The depiction

Early Netherlandish painting refers to the work of artists, sometimes known as the Flemish Primitives, active in the Burgundian and Habsburg Netherlands during the 15th- and 16th-century Northern Renaissance; especially in the flourishing cities of Bruges, Ghent, Tournai and Brussels. Their work follows the International Gothic style. It lasts at least until the death of Gerard David in 1523, although many scholars extend it to the start of the Dutch Revolt in 1566 or 1568. Early Netherlandish painting coincides with the Early and High Italian Renaissance but is seen as an independent artistic culture, separate from the Renaissance humanism that characterised developments in Italy. B

Assisted by the workshop system, panels and a variety of crafts were sold to foreign princes or merchants through private engagement or market stalls. A majority were destroyed during waves of iconoclasm in the 16th and 17th centuries; today only a few thousand examples survive.

Scholarship of Early Netherlandish painting was one of the main activities of 19th and 20th-century art history, and was a major focus of two of the most important art historians of the 20th century: Max J. Friedländer (From Van Eyck to Breugel and Early Netherlandish Painting) and Erwin Panofsky (Early Netherlandish Painting). More Early Netherlandish 

LARGE BRASS ICON, Russian
 THE OLD TESTAMENT TRINITY, c. 19th century
Cast in relief, enamelled in green, white, black, white and blue
21.3 x 17.3 cm. 
Private collection

LARGE BRASS AND ENAMEL ICON, Russian, 
SHOWING THE OLD TESTAMENT TRINITY, c. 19th century
Cast in relief, enameled in green, white, yellow, blue and black
21 x 17 cm.
Private collection

The first reference to the activity of the triune God is recorded in the first account of creation. There it states: "And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters" and also: "Then God said, 'Let us make man in Our image, according to our likeness'". "Elohim", the designation for God used in the original Hebrew text, is plural. It means "the Divine" as well as "gods" and should be understood, in light of the gospel, as a reference to the triune God.

The various divine manifestations, for example "Angel of the Lord", "Spirit of God", or "Spirit of the Lord" are also interpreted as references to the mystery of the trinity of God.

The three messengers of God who visited Abraham are understood in Christian tradition as a reference to the mystery of the divine Trinity.

The activity of the triune God in the priestly blessing is interpreted in the same way: "The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace."

The angel's threefold praise in the inaugural vision of the prophet Isaiah is also considered an indication of God's trinity: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!". More on  triune God

BRASS ICON,  Russian, 
BRASS ICON SHOWING ST. DIMITRIY OF SALONIKI, c. 19th century
Cast, decorated with enamel
11.2 x 9.8 cm
Private collection

Saint Dimitrios. The city of Thessaloniki suffered repeated attacks and sieges from the Slavic peoples who moved into the Balkans, and Demetrios was credited with many miraculous interventions to defend the city. Hence later traditions about Demetrius regard him as a soldier in the Roman army, and he came to be regarded as an important military martyr. Unsurprisingly, he was extremely popular in the Middle Ages. More Saint Dimitrios

Secondary altar shrine
Overall height: 127 cm. 
Width: 83.5 cm. Depth: approx. 31 cm. 
17th century

Wooden high altar shrine with carved blasting gables, in winged angel head, including frieze. The doors are carved with cassettes, each with a moving braid. In the open state round arched box nets. Previously, carving relief depictions of Saint Peter on the left as well as of Saint Francis on the right, each on large acanthus volute. The back wall painted in a landscape, a wooden cross with a carved Corpus Christi, flanked by the assistant figures "Maria" and "Johannes" in the Hochrelief. The doors of the door are decorated with four paintings, on the upper left, "Jesus at the Mount of Olives," on the upper right, "Flagellation of Christ". Figures and reliefs. (1091259) (2) (11) Two-door shrine altar Height: 127 cm. Width: 83.5 cm. Depth: about 31 cm. 17th century. Portrait format wooden altar shrine. When it's done, it's a box-shaped niche surmounted by a round arch with carvings of Saint Peter on the left and Saint Francis on the right. The interior of a carved wood carving in a carved wooden carving in the background. Four paintings are set inside the doors. When it's done, it's a box-shaped niche surmounted by a round arch with carvings of Saint Peter on the left and Saint Francis on the right. The interior of a carved wood carving in a carved wooden carving in the background. Four paintings are set inside the doors. When it's done, it's a box-shaped niche surmounted by a round arch with carvings of Saint Peter on the left and Saint Francis on the right. The interior of a carved wood carving in a carved wooden carving in the background. Four paintings are set inside the doors.



Acknowledgement: HAMPEL,  SOTHEBY'S, and others

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11 Works, RELIGIOUS ART - Contemporary, Haitian Art, & 20th Century Interpretation of the Bible! With Footnotes - 8

Roy Newell, 1914 - 2006
THE HOLY LAND, c. 1952
Oil on panel
4 1/2 by 11 1/2 inches (11.4 by 29.2 cm)
Private collection

An American abstract painter, Roy Newell was born in Manhattan's Lower East Side on May 10, 1914, and died of cancer on November 22, 2006, in Manhattan. His paintings are typified by richly-hued geometric forms in subtle juxtapositions and textures, heightened by an intimate scale and striking color harmonies. He participated in the Group of American Abstract Expressionists and was a founding member of the 8th Street Artist Club, which also included Willem de Kooning, Arshile Gorky, Franz Kline and Philip Pavia.

A self-taught artist, Newell was not a prolific painter. His works number less than 100 and were often executed over decades, as he constantly refined his compositions with new colours until satisfied with the result. Due to their continued reworkings, many of his paintings were up to an inch thick when completed, with a combined depth of wood support and layers of meticulously applied paint. Newell exhibited infrequently and sold very few of his paintings during his lifetime. However, his works are in notable public and private collections. More on Roy Newell

Amin Montazeri, Iranian, b. 1992
Hell, c. 2016
Mixed media on canvas
51.97 x 39.37 x 1.57 in. (132 x 100 x 4 cm.) 
Private collection

Artist Amin Montazeri is one of Tehran’s most promising emerging artists today. His work is inspired by the role that legends and myths have played throughout history. Both shaping history and being shaped by history, these tales have had a lasting impact, often reoccurring in different or similar forms over the course of history. Resembling a mosaic that could be found in the medieval churches of the past, Hell features the gruesome image of the darker side of the afterlife. Bodies contorted in agony are piled high leading to the central image of a burning tree where men are to be judged on a scale. The composition is brimming with various biblical references of deceitful serpents, ghoulish gargoyles, and angels. 

Amin Montazeri was born in 1992 in Tehran, Iran where he received his B.F.A. in painting and is currently receiving his M.F.A in painting from the College of Fine Arts in Tehran. Montazeri’s work has been included in exhibitions at galleries such as Dastan’s Basement and Arya Gallery in Tehran. In 2015 and 2016, his work was featured at Art Dubai in Dastan’s Basement booth. More on Artist Amin Montazeri

Saint Praxedes, - Vermeer
Peter Lindbergh & Julianne Moore

Saint Praxedes is a traditional Christian saint of the 2nd century. She is sometimes called Praxedis or Praxed. Little is known about Praxedes, and not all accounts agree. According to Jacobus de Voragine's The Golden Legend, Praxedes was the sister of Saint Pudentiana; their brothers were Saint Donatus and Saint Timothy. 

When the Emperor Marcus Antoninus was hunting down Christians, she sought them out to relieve them with money, care, comfort and every charitable aid. Some she hid in her house, others she encouraged to keep firm in the faith, and of yet others she buried the bodies; and she allowed those who were in prison or toiling in slavery to lack nothing. At last, being unable any longer to bear the cruelties inflicted on Christians, she prayed to God that, if it were expedient for her to die, she might be released from beholding such sufferings. And so on July 21 she was called to the reward of her goodness in Heaven. More on Saint Praxedes

Peter Lindbergh & Julianne Moore

Johannes, Jan or Johan Vermeer (1632 – December 1675) was a Dutch painter who specialized in domestic interior scenes of middle-class life. Vermeer was a moderately successful provincial genre painter in his lifetime. He evidently was not wealthy, leaving his wife and children in debt at his death, perhaps because he produced relatively few paintings.

Vermeer worked slowly and with great care, and frequently used very expensive pigments. He is particularly renowned for his masterly treatment and use of light in his work.

He was recognized during his lifetime in Delft and The Hague, but his modest celebrity gave way to obscurity after his death. In the 19th century, Vermeer was rediscovered by Gustav Friedrich Waagen and Théophile Thoré-Bürger, who published an essay attributing 66 pictures to him, although only 34 paintings are universally attributed to him today. Since that time, Vermeer's reputation has grown, and he is now acknowledged as one of the greatest painters of the Dutch Golden Age. More Vermeer

Saint Praxedes - Vermeer

Peter Lindbergh (born Peter Brodbeck on November 23, 1944) is a German photographer and film director. Lindbergh is known for his cinematic images. As a teenager, he worked as window dresser for the Karstadt and Horten department stores in Duisburg. The vast beaches and the industrial settings of his hometown Duisburg, have influenced his work strongly over the years. In the early 1960s, he moved to Lucerne and months later to Berlin where he enrolled in the Berlin Academy of Fine Arts. He hitchhiked to Arles in the footsteps of his idol, Vincent van Gogh. After several months in Arles, he continued through to Spain and Morocco, a journey that took him two years.

Returning to Germany, he studied Abstract Art at the College of Art in Krefeld (North Rhine-Westphalia). Influenced by Joseph Kosuth and the Conceptual art movement, he was invited in 1969, before graduating, to present his work at the avant-garde Galerie Denise René. These works were exhibited in the Objets ludiques exhibition at the Tinguely Museum in Basel in 2014. After moving to Düsseldorf in 1971, he turned his attention to photography and worked for two years assisting German photographer Hans Lux, before opening his own studio in 1973. Becoming well known in his native country, he joined the Stern magazine family along with photographers Helmut Newton, Guy Bourdin and Hans Feurer. More Peter Lindbergh

Julianne Moore (born Julie Anne Smith; December 3, 1960) is an American actress, prolific in films since the early 1990s. She is particularly known for her portrayals of emotionally troubled women in both independent and Hollywood films, and has received many accolades, including the 2014 Academy Award for Best Actress.

After studying theatre at Boston University, Moore began her career with a series of television roles. From 1985 to 1988. Her film debut was in Tales from the Darkside: The Movie (1990). Moore first received critical attention with Robert Altman's Short Cuts (1993), and successive performances in Vanya on 42nd Street (1994) and Safe (1995) continued this acclaim. Starring roles in the blockbusters Nine Months (1995) and The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) established her as a leading actress in Hollywood.

Moore received considerable recognition in the late 1990s and early 2000s, earning Oscar nominations for Boogie Nights (1997), The End of the Affair (1999), Far from Heaven (2002) and The Hours (2002). The year 2014 was key for Moore, as she gave an Oscar-winning performance as an Alzheimer's patient in Still Alice, was named Best Actress at the Cannes Film Festival for Maps to the Stars, and joined the lucrative Hunger Games series.

In addition to acting, Moore has written a series of children's books. More on Julianne Moore

Gerard Paul, (Haitian, 20th c.)
Saint George Slaying Dragon, circa 1970's
Mixed media on paper
20 x 22 inches
Private collection

Saint George (circa 275/281 – 23 April 303 AD) was a soldier in the Roman army who later became venerated as a Christian martyr. His parents were Christians of Greek background; his father Gerontius was a Roman army official from Cappadocia and his mother Polychronia was from Lydda, Syria Palaestina. Saint George became an officer in the Roman army in the Guard of Diocletian, who ordered his death for failing to recant his Christian faith.


In the fully developed Western version of the Saint George Legend, a dragon, or crocodile, makes its nest at the spring that provides water for the city of "Silene" (perhaps modern Cyrene in Libya or the city of Lydda in Palistine, depending on the source). Consequently, the citizens have to dislodge the dragon from its nest for a time, to collect water. To do so, each day they offer the dragon at first a sheep, and if no sheep can be found, then a maiden is the best substitute for one. The victim is chosen by drawing lots. One day, this happens to be the princess. The monarch begs for her life to be spared, but to no avail. She is offered to the dragon, but then Saint George appears on his travels. He faces the dragon, protects himself with the sign of the Cross, slays the dragon, and rescues the princess. The citizens abandon their ancestral paganism and convert to Christianity. More on Saint George 

Gerard Paul was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti on October 9, 1943. He has been a man of many trades including mason and cabinet maker. While working as a house painter in 1965 he used left over paint to start his career as an artist, selling to Mrs. Malsy Minsk, the German ambassador's wife. In 1972 Paul found gallery representation that led to a solo Paris exhibition that same year. He is known for Vodou themes, everyday scenes and compositions that reflect Haiti's agricultural and maritime history. More on Gerard Paul

Dieuseul Paul, (Haitian/Damiens, b. 1952)
Blue Loa (floating with delicate flowers), dated 1985
Oil on masonite
30 x 24 inches
Private collection

Loa are the spirits of Haitian Vodou and Louisiana Voodoo. They are also referred to as "mystères" and "the invisibles" and are intermediaries between Bondye (French: Bon Dieu, meaning "good God")—the Supreme Creator, who is distant from the world—and humanity. Unlike saints or angels, however, they are not simply prayed to, they are served. They are each distinct beings with their own personal likes and dislikes, distinct sacred rhythms, songs, dances, ritual symbols, and special modes of service. Contrary to popular belief, the loa are not deities in and of themselves; they are intermediaries for, and dependent on, a distant Bondye.

The word loa (or lwa) comes from the French "les lois;" the laws in English

Born in Damiens, Haiti, Dieuseul Paul is one of the original members of the Saint Soleil school of art.  This art movement was born in 1973.  Most of its paintings depict dream-like images of Vodou spirits and loa and the Saint Soleil artists themselves often speak of the painting process as being one that is conducted in a spiritual state. More on Dieuseul Paul

Gerard Paul, (Haitian, 20th c.)
Saint George and the Dragon, circa 1970's
Oil on board
20 x 22 inches
Private collection

Saint George (circa 275/281 – 23 April 303 AD), see above

Gerard Paul (Haitian, 20th c., see above

LaFortune Felix, (Haitian/Pontsonde, 1933-2016)
Saint Holding Cross and Feather, circa 1970's
Oil on canvas
16 1/4 x 12 1/4 inches
Private collection

Strong composition of the syncretic synthesis between Christian and African religions that created Haitian Vodou.

Born 1933 in Pontsonde, Haiti. Lafortune Felix lives in St. Marc where he is a farmer and formally a voodoo priest. Through the wall paintings which he decorated his temple, he came to the attention of Pierre Monosiet, the late curator of the St. Pierre College Museum of Haitian Art. Provided with materials, the artist began painting on masonite in 1972.

Felix draws his content from his knowledge of and concern with the supernatural. His self-assured, forceful personality and the power of his vision endow his work with an intensity. Very temperamental by nature, Felix portrays highly active scenes. There is drama and breathless wonder in his dynamic brushwork. His preference for strong color betrays the origin of his pictorial perception: the need and desire to impress the worshipper as well as the loas. More on Lafortune Felix

LaFortune Felix (Haitian/Pontsonde, 1933-2016)
Erzulie Apparition by Rowers, circa 1970's
Oil on masonite, 22 1/2 x 10 1/2 inches
Private collection

Erzulie is a family of loa, or spirits in Vodou. Erzulie Fréda Dahomey, the Rada aspect of Erzulie, is the Haitian African spirit of love, beauty, jewelry, dancing, luxury, and flowers. She wears three wedding rings, one for each husband. Her symbol is a heart, her colours are pink, blue, white and gold, and her favourite sacrifices include jewellery, perfume, sweet cakes and liqueurs. Coquettish and very fond of beauty and finery, Erzulie Freda is femininity and compassion embodied, yet she also has a darker side; she is seen as jealous and spoiled and within some Vodoun circles is considered to be lazy. During ritual possession, she may enter the body of either a man or a woman. She enjoys the game of flirtation and seduces people without distinguishing between sexes. In Christian iconography she is often identified with the Mater Dolorosa, as well as another loa named, Metres Ezili. She is conceived of as never able to attain her heart's most fervent desire. For this reason she always leaves a service in tears. Her syncretic iconographical depiction is usually based on that of the Virgin and Child, because she is the mother of Ti. Common syncretizations include Iyalorde Oxum as she relates to the Yoruba Vodu goddess of Erotic Love, Gold and Femininity. More on Erzulie 

LaFortune Felix (Haitian/Pontsonde, 1933-2016), see above

Camy Rocher, (Haitian/Baraderes, 1959-1980)
Mambo Ceremony for Erzulie, dated 1979
Oil on masonite
24 x 24 inches
Private collection

Rare and early example of a religious painting by Camy Rocher who died at the early age of 21, leaving us a small but strong body of work that is highly collectible.

Erzulie, see above

Camy Rocher (Haitian/Baraderes, 1959-1980) may be unique in art history by establishing himself as an important painter with a very significant body of highly acclaimed work, while having lived only 23 short years.

Rocher was born in 1959 in Baraderes, on the southern peninsula of Haiti, and died tragically in 1981. Despite his short life, his works - which depict almost exclusively scenes of vodou practices and figures - are illustrated in almost every important reference on Haitian art. His works rarely appear on the market, and they are widely sought by collectors.

Rocher began to paint at the age of 12 or 13 under the patronage of the renowned artist Calixte Henry. Rocher's goal was to bear witness to his deeply engrained Vodou culture. More on Camy Rocher

Pauleus Vital, (Haitian/Jacmel, 1918-1984)
Scourging of Christ, circa 1970's
Oil on Masonite
12 x 16 inches
Private collection

The Flagellation of Christ, sometimes known as Christ at the Column or the Scourging at the Pillar, is a scene from the Passion of Christ very frequently shown in Christian art, in cycles of the Passion or the larger subject of the Life of Christ. It is the fourth station of the modern alternate Stations of the Cross, and a Sorrowful Mystery of the Rosary. The column to which Christ is normally tied, and the rope, scourge, whip or birch are elements in the Arma Christi. The Basilica di Santa Prassede in Rome, claimed to possess the original column. More on The Flagellation of Christ

Pauleus Vital, born in October, 1917 in Jacmel, was a cabinetmaker and a shipbuilder in Jacmel before joining the Centre d'Art in Port-au-Prince at the encouragement of his half brother Prefete Duffaut in 1958.  He later returned to Jacmel, where he continued to paint until his death on June 18, 1984.

He is included in the permanent collection of the Milwaukee Museum of Art, the Waterloo Museum of Art in Iowa, and the Ramapo College in Mahwah, New Jersey. More on Pauleus Vital








Acknowledgement: Sotheby’sZQ Art, and others

Images are copyright of their respective owners, assignees or others

We do not sell art prints, framed posters or reproductions. Ads are shown only to compensate the hosting expenses.

If you enjoyed this post, please share with friends and family.