Lorraine School (?) circa 1640 - Lot 37

Lorraine School (?) circa 1640 Saint James the Pilgrim Canvas H. 54.5 cm - L. 45.5 cm ET In the 17th century, in the wake of the Catholic Reformation and the development of Baroque art in France, Saint James was often depicted in his two main forms: James the Greater, apostle of Christ, and Saint James the Lesser, pilgrim. is often depicted in its two main forms: James the Greater, apostle of Christ, and the pilgrim James the pilgrim, identifiable by his shell, staff and pilgrim's hat. This second iconography became dominant, as it corresponded to the spirituality of the Compostela pilgrimage, highly valued as an experience as an experience of faith and inner conversion. The Saint is often depicted, notably by Georges de La Tour around 1620-1640. composition is reduced to essentials. Light has not only a plastic function: it becomes a tool for spiritual of spiritual revelation. It gently shapes volumes and isolates the figure in a form of visual silence. In this context, Saint James is not so much the pilgrim on the move as the pilgrim as a figure of meditation meditation, embodying an interiorized spirituality in tune with certain sensibilities of 17th-century French Catholicism. of the 17th century.