Sunday, January 27, 2019

05 Works, Today, January 26th, is Saint Paula's Day, With Footnotes - 26

André Reinoso, Portuguese painter (active v. 1610 to 1641).
Saint Paula instructs his nuns, c. 1650
Mosteiro dos Jerónimos, in Lisbon, Portugal


André Reinoso, Portuguese (active v. 1610 to 1641). Attributes to him are the nineteen panels of the Life of St. Francis Xavier (Lisbon, sacristy of the Church of St. Roch), whose picturesque composition, the abundance of characters and bizarre details, the wealth of color and chiaroscuro evoke the influence of contemporary Spanish workshops. The Church of Mercy in Obidos preserves intact the painted ensemble including the Visitation and Pentecost (1628) at the high altar and the Mount at Calvary and the Pietà (1630) on the side altars. Stylistic affinities also give him a panel of the Saint-Roch church and a series devoted to the Life of Saint Jerome (Lisbon, sacristy of the Jeronimos Church of Belém). More on André Reinoso

Saint Paula of Rome (AD 347–404) was an ancient Roman saint and early Desert Mother. A member of one of the richest senatorial families of Rome. Paula was married and had four daughters and a son. Paula was widowed at the age of 32. 


André Reinoso, Portuguese painter (active v. 1610 to 1641).
Detail Saint Paula instructs his nuns, c. 1650
Mosteiro dos Jerónimos, in Lisbon, Portugal

She became more interested in religion as time went on. Paula became an enthusiastic member of a semi-monastic group of women. In 382, she met Saint Jerome, who had studied in Rome as a youth and had traveled to Germany and Aquileia, and for some years had lived in the East as an ascetic and scholar.



Giuseppe Bottani (1717 – 1784)
St. Paula of Rome Departs for the Holy Land, c. 1745
Oil on canvas
cm 410 x 231
Braidense National Library, Milan

Giuseppe Bottani (1717 – 1784) was an Italian painter active in the Baroque period. He was born in Cremona. He was sent to study in Florence then Rome. He returned to Cremona after 1745. In 1769, he was named professor of painting and director of the Academy of Fine Arts in Mantua. He was known for painting landscapes in the style of Gaspard Poussin, and figures in the style of Maratta.

He painted a St. Paola taking leave of her Attendants, once in the church of Santi Cosmo e Damiano at Milan.



He trained his brother Giovanni Bottani, active in Pontremoli circa 1720. Another of his pupils was the Brescian Domenico Vantini. Giuseppe died in Mantua. More on Giuseppe Bottani

A year after the death of her husband, Paula pursued a pilgrimage to tour all of the holy sights traveling with daughter Eustochium and Jerome himself. Paula could undertake this voyage due to her widow status which left her a significant fortune allowing her exemption from remarriage. Additionally, having had a male heir and two married daughters provided supplementary financial insurance. Her travels are documented by Jerome in his later writing addressed to Eustochium which discusses how Paula participated in the environments they toured, experiencing visual vividness of biblical events at each locale. In conclusion to her journey, Paula decided to remain in Bethlehem to develop a monastery and spiritual retreat with Jerome. 


Paula and Jerome built a double monastery, one for Paula and her nuns and another for Jerome and his monks. Jerome made explicit in his letter how Paula, through these practices, became a recognized figure in the Christian community. 



Francisco de Zurbarán, (1598–1664)
St. Jerome with St. Paula Romana and her daughter, St. Eustochium, from 1638 until 1640
Oil on canvas
Height: 247 cm (97.2 ″); Width: 174 cm (68.5 ″)
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 

Francisco de Zurbarán (baptized November 7, 1598 – August 27, 1664) was a Spanish painter. He is known primarily for his religious paintings depicting monks, nuns, and martyrs, and for his still-lifes. Zurbarán gained the nickname Spanish Caravaggio, owing to the forceful, realistic use of chiaroscuro in which he excelled. More on Francisco de Zurbarán

Paula helped Jerome in his translation of the Bible from Hebrew and Greek into Latin. She provided the reference works necessary for the undertaking. Being versed in Hebrew, she edited Jerome's manuscripts. She and her daughter Saint Eustochium copied the work for circulation.



Francesco Botticini (1446-1498)
Saint Jerome in Penitence with Saints and Donors, detail showing Sts. Paula and Eustochium (1490)
London National Gallery


Francesco Botticini, (1446  - Death: 1498), was born Francesco di Giovanni Botticini. His father painted playing cards as an artisan, influencing his son to work independently after his brief training. His studies were under Neri di Bicci and Botticini also studied under another of Bicci’s pupils, Cosimo Rosselli (1439 – 1507) and Andrea del Verrocchio (1435 – 1488). His 1470 piece.


As exampled by his works in the cloistered church in Empoli, Botticini painted in a highly decorative style. Operating his own workshop by 1469, his decorative style was praised much, but still overshadowed by contemporaries such as Filippo Lippi (1457 – 1504) and Sandro Botticelli (1444 – 1510). More on Francesco Botticini


At one point, in traveling to Nitria, she was earnestly received by renowned monks from Egypt and once her death arrived on January 26 404 AD, her funeral was noted as having a significant portion of the Palestine population arrive in her honor. A year after her passing, Paula obtained the title of Saint. 


 André Reinoso, Portuguese painter (active v. 1610 to 1641).
Passage of Saint Paula, mid-17th century
Mosteiro dos Jerónimos, in Lisbon, Portugal

André Reinoso, Portuguese (active v. 1610 to 1641). Attributes to him are the nineteen panels of the Life of St. Francis Xavier (Lisbon, sacristy of the Church of St. Roch), whose picturesque composition, the abundance of characters and bizarre details, the wealth of color and chiaroscuro evoke the influence of contemporary Spanish workshops. The Church of Mercy in Obidos preserves intact the painted ensemble including the Visitation and Pentecost (1628) at the high altar and the Mount at Calvary and the Pietà (1630) on the side altars. Stylistic affinities also give him a panel of the Saint-Roch church and a series devoted to the Life of Saint Jerome (Lisbon, sacristy of the Jeronimos Church of Belém). More on André Reinoso

When Jerome died in late 419 or early 420, he was buried beneath the north aisle of the Church of the Nativity, near the graves of Paula. More on Saint Paula






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