The Baptism of Christ c. 17th century

drawing

toned paper

ink painting

possibly oil pastel

handmade artwork painting

fluid art

coffee painting

underpainting

france

watercolour bleed

watercolour illustration

watercolor

This 17th century drawing by Jacques Stella depicts a scene from the New Testament, the Baptism of Christ. The drawing uses a combination of pen and brown wash to render the figures and landscape with impressive detail. The composition is arranged around a central point of action where Christ is being baptized by John the Baptist, while a dove descends from heaven signifying the Holy Spirit. Above, angels look on in adoration as John, holding a staff, pours water over Christ. In the lower right corner, onlookers witness the scene in a kneeling posture. The work is a preparatory drawing for a larger painting, and the Minneapolis Institute of Art houses the work in their collection.

Comments

minneapolisinstituteofart about 1 year ago

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Lyonais painter Jacques Stella enjoyed one of the most spectacular artistic careers of the 17th century. For extended periods he served Cosimo II de Medici in Florence, Pope Urban VIII in Rome, and Louis XIII and Cardinal Richelieu in Paris. He became one of the leading exponents of classicism in France. The present drawing of the baptism of Christ appears to be an early study for a major altarpiece completed in 1645 (Saint-Louis-en-l’Île, Paris). The Louvre owns a closely related drawing of the composition in a more advanced stage. Many elements of our drawing were carried over to the finished painting, but ultimately the artist chose to present Christ as standing rather than kneeling.