St Francis of Assisi

This impressive picture of St Francis of Assisi is distinguished by its expressive draughtsmanship and its sensitive style of painting. St Francis is presented as an ascetic monk with tears in his eyes, absorbed in meditating on the Passion of Christ. This representation of him is common in West European Baroque art. It shows the depth of the piety of the founder of the Franciscans, identifying himself with the Passion. The saint’s example, encouraging austerity and spiritual perfection, was understandable to clerics, and especially to Franciscan and Bernardine monks. The inscription ‘Joseph Branenmayr’ on the reverse was made on a duplicate canvas covering the old one, and is not an original, but probably a copy of a previous one. The German surname seems to have been copied with mistakes, and therefore the artist of the work remains unknown.

Text author Dalia Vasiliūnienė

Source: Law firm Valiunas Ellex art album HEAVEN AND BEYOND (2016). Compiler Dalia Vasiliūnienė. Text authors Dalia Vasiliūnienė, Skaidrė Urbonienė
Expositions: “Heaven and Beyond. Works of religious art from the collection of Rolandas Valiūnas and the law firm Valiunas Ellex“, 31 May–24 September 2016, Church Heritage Museum, Vilnius (curators Dalia Vasiliūnienė, Skaidrė Urbonienė)

This impressive picture of St Francis of Assisi is distinguished by its expressive draughtsmanship and its sensitive style of painting. St Francis is presented as an ascetic monk with tears in his eyes, absorbed in meditating on the Passion of Christ. This representation of him is common in West European Baroque art. It shows the depth of the piety of the founder of the Franciscans, identifying himself with the Passion. The saint’s example, encouraging austerity and spiritual perfection, was understandable to clerics, and especially to Franciscan and Bernardine monks. The inscription ‘Joseph Branenmayr’ on the reverse was made on a duplicate canvas covering the old one, and is not an original, but probably a copy of a previous one. The German surname seems to have been copied with mistakes, and therefore the artist of the work remains unknown.

Text author Dalia Vasiliūnienė

Source: Law firm Valiunas Ellex art album HEAVEN AND BEYOND (2016). Compiler Dalia Vasiliūnienė. Text authors Dalia Vasiliūnienė, Skaidrė Urbonienė
Expositions: “Heaven and Beyond. Works of religious art from the collection of Rolandas Valiūnas and the law firm Valiunas Ellex“, 31 May–24 September 2016, Church Heritage Museum, Vilnius (curators Dalia Vasiliūnienė, Skaidrė Urbonienė)