Apostel Jakobus Major 1602 - 1616

This is Jacques Bellange's etching, Apostel Jakobus Major, created sometime between 1575 and 1616. Bellange, working in the Mannerist style, often imbued his religious and courtly subjects with an air of refinement. Here, we see Saint James, one of Jesus's apostles, but he appears in a rather theatrical, romanticized manner. Look at his flamboyant hat and the elaborate drapery, these details create a sense of drama. This flamboyance can be seen in connection with the artist's position in the court of Lorraine. The emotional weight of the piece resides in this tension: the subject is sacred, yet the treatment veers towards the secular and ornamental. How does this affect our understanding of faith and representation? The traditional narratives of saints are reimagined through the lens of courtly aesthetics and personal expression. This is less about divinity and more about the artist's creative vision.