Agatha Serving Her Severed Breasts on a Platter 1510

Ambrogio Bergognone painted 'Agatha Serving Her Severed Breasts on a Platter' sometime around the turn of the 16th century, most likely in oil paint on a wood panel. The artist’s process, in this case, directly relates to the function of the artwork. The slow, deliberate application of oil paint to a carefully prepared surface mirrors the solemn nature of the subject. The work presents Saint Agatha, a figure of piety and strength in the face of gruesome persecution. Agatha’s attributes, her breasts and the platter, are rendered with almost equal attention to the delicate fabric of her dress. The even-handed treatment encourages a reconsideration of what is normally regarded as beautiful. The painting elevates not only Agatha's suffering but the artistic labor required to render her likeness. Ultimately, this painting asks us to consider the value of materials and making, and the power of art to transform the gruesome into the sublime. It collapses traditional distinctions between surface and depth, fine art and craft, inviting us to see the sacred in the everyday.