New for February 2018

February 1, 2018

New for February 2018

Ash Wednesday falls of February 14th this year. As we begin the Season of Lent, I'm presenting four new paintings of the Last Supper from the Sacred Art Pilgrim Collection by artists from the Americas. The images follow the long-table format of the Leonardo Da Vinci masterpiece--with interesting regional variations. In an oil painting on burlap from Mexican Artist Jose Maria de Servin, the haloed Christ appears at the center of a frieze of disciples, resembling uniformly made clay dolls. Only Judas with his closed eyes stands out from the cherubic crowd. Haitian Artist Gerard Fortune sets the scene alfresco with voodoo motifs. The postering at this table laid with exotic ceramic ware recalls the gesticulating apostles of the Da Vinci painting.  Mariano Gonzalez Chavajay, a Guatemalan artist of Mayan ancestry, casts the disciples as modern day campesino peasants (above) positioned Da Vinci-style with their Master at the table against the stunning backdrop of Guatemala's Lake Atitlan and Volcano San Pedro. Last but not least, an unknown Salvadoran folk artist from the Jesus Artesano workshop in La Palma presents Christ's final meal with his fellowers as a celebratory feast open to all the peoples of the world, rendered in the brightly-colored abstract style associated with this Central American folk art center. The quartet of Lenten-themed images can be found on The Last Supper page of the The Passion of Christ gallery of The Life of Christ section. (John Kohan)