Altar of St. Jude Thaddeus with archangel Michael 1755

This is Johann Georg Pinzel’s "Altar of St. Jude Thaddeus with Archangel Michael," crafted sometime between 1750 and 1760. Pinzel was a master of the Lviv school of sculpture, active in present-day Western Ukraine, then part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Pinzel's intensely emotional, almost theatrical style, breaks with the more restrained Baroque traditions of his time. Here, Archangel Michael stands powerfully, sword in one hand, scales of justice in the other, surrounded by cherubic figures, and poised above an image of St. Jude. Reflect on the cultural and religious context of this altar. It was likely commissioned by wealthy Catholic patrons amid ongoing political and religious tensions in the region. Pinzel's dramatic flair may have served to invigorate faith and assert Catholic identity in a contested landscape. What do you make of the way Pinzel uses such expressive figures to evoke a potent spiritual experience? How might it have resonated with people of the time, and how does it speak to us today?