Artwork Page for Saint Sebastian

Details / Information for Saint Sebastian

Saint Sebastian

c. 1776

James Barry

(Irish, 1741–1806)
Culture
Ireland
Medium
Soft-ground etching
Support
Wove paper
Measurements
Platemark: 27.7 x 18.5 cm (10 7/8 x 7 5/16 in.); Sheet: 28.4 x 19.3 cm (11 3/16 x 7 5/8 in.)
Credit Line
Norman O. Stone and Ella A. Stone Memorial Fund 2016.297
Catalogue raisonné
Pressly (1981), p. 265, no. 2
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print

Description

Irish artist James Barry made drawings from the works of Michelangelo and other masters while in Rome between 1765 and 1771, at a time when studying from Renaissance masters in Italy was central to artistic training. The muscular body and twisting position of Saint Sebastian—who was martyred for his faith by being shot with arrows—recall Michelangelo’s dynamic male nudes. This is the only known impression of this print. Printed by Barry himself, it demonstrates his experimentation with soft-ground etching to imitate the effect of chalk drawing.
A vertically oriented soft-ground etching in black ink depicts Saint Sebastian, a muscular man with light skin tone wearing only a draped loincloth. Bound to a gnarled tree, his arms reach for branches above while an arrow pierces his side. Dark, dense hatching creates heavy shadows behind the figure, contrasting with a pale landscape in the distance. The print is set on aged paper within a double-lined golden frame.

Saint Sebastian

c. 1776

James Barry

(Irish, 1741–1806)
Ireland

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