The Blinding of St Victor by Bartolomeo Bulgarini

The Blinding of St Victor c. 1351

unusual home photography

handmade artwork painting

studio composition

jesus-christ

naive art

painting painterly

painting art

watercolour illustration

green and neutral

watercolor

watercolur painting

This small-scale tempera painting on panel depicts the biblical story of the Blinding of St Victor, a Christian saint martyred in the 4th century. The scene unfolds within a richly detailed architectural setting, where the saint is surrounded by guards and a figure gesturing from a balcony above, likely representing the person responsible for the blinding. The artwork is attributed to the Sienese painter Bartolomeo Bulgarini, an artist active in the mid-14th century. The work, dating from c. 1351, showcases the stylistic characteristics of Sienese painting, which was known for its expressive figures, intense colors, and attention to detail. Today, this small but powerful painting can be found in the Städel Museum in Frankfurt.

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stadelmuseum over 1 year ago

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Its richness of execution and its artistic quality are what make this panel so captivating. It was once part of the predella of an altarpiece – later largely destroyed – from Siena Cathedral. Bulgarini’s retable and three others by Pietro and Ambrogio Lorenzetti and Simone Martini surrounded the city’s principal religious work, ‘Duccio’s Maestà’. For his depiction of the blinding of St Victor, the artist used the kiss of Judas as his formal model. Victor’s martyrdom is thus linked in a prestige-enhancing manner with the Passion of Christ.