Šv Ignoto Street

The watercolour by Jan Matela depicts a splendid Baroque gateway on Šv Ignoto Street, surmounted by a cross. In the first half of the 20th century, the gateway was the entrance to St Catherine’s Benedictine Convent. A bare windowless wall isolated the Benedictine nuns from the outside world, as the order was especially strict and private. The watercolour was based on Jan Bułhak’s skilful photograph Šv Ignoto Street: the gate of the Benedictine Convent, for it is seen from the same angle, and the composition, lighting and the configuration of light and shade are identical. In the watercolour, as in the photograph, the intimate subject, with medieval details, wooden pavements, cobbles and a lamp, leads the viewer into a mysterious and romantic corner of Vilnius.

Source: Law firm Valiunas Ellex art album VILNIUS. TOPOPHILIA I (2014). Compiler and author Laima Laučkaitė
Expositions: “Vilnius. Topophilia. Views of Vilnius from the collection of the law firm Ellex Valiunas”, 5 October – 26 November 2017, National Gallery of Art, Vilnius (curator Laima Laučkaitė)

The watercolour by Jan Matela depicts a splendid Baroque gateway on Šv Ignoto Street, surmounted by a cross. In the first half of the 20th century, the gateway was the entrance to St Catherine’s Benedictine Convent. A bare windowless wall isolated the Benedictine nuns from the outside world, as the order was especially strict and private. The watercolour was based on Jan Bułhak’s skilful photograph Šv Ignoto Street: the gate of the Benedictine Convent, for it is seen from the same angle, and the composition, lighting and the configuration of light and shade are identical. In the watercolour, as in the photograph, the intimate subject, with medieval details, wooden pavements, cobbles and a lamp, leads the viewer into a mysterious and romantic corner of Vilnius.

Source: Law firm Valiunas Ellex art album VILNIUS. TOPOPHILIA I (2014). Compiler and author Laima Laučkaitė
Expositions: “Vilnius. Topophilia. Views of Vilnius from the collection of the law firm Ellex Valiunas”, 5 October – 26 November 2017, National Gallery of Art, Vilnius (curator Laima Laučkaitė)