Jacob Smits produced a number of pietas around the turn of the century. They bear witness of his Christian beliefs and of his deep sadness at the death of his wife Malvina, in 1899. These religious works of art were inspired by the painters of the late Middle Ages both in their iconography as well as in their stylistic effects. The subject of the dead body of Christ flanked by his grieving mother and Mary Magdalene is frequently evoked in the art of the Flemish Primitives. By using a golden background, Smits creates a feeling of sacredness and reinforces the mystical atmosphere of silence and piety. The use of watercolours and gouache imbues the scene with feeling.
| Artist |
Jakob Smits
RKD
VIAF
Wikidata
|
|---|---|
| Title | The Lamentation of Christ |
| Date | 1901 |
| Period | 20th century |
| Signatures, inscriptions, and markings | monogram top right: JS |
| Collection | print room |
| Object type |
watercolour
AAT
gouache AAT |
| Inventory number | 1902-V |
| Acquisition credit |
purchase
salon Ghent 1902 |
| Current whereabouts | Work currently not on display |
| Permalink | https://mskgent.be/collection/work/data/1902-V |
| IIIF Manifest | https://imagehub.mskgent.be/iiif/3/3755/manifest.json |
| Art & Architecture Thesaurus | 300055874 religious symbolism AAT |
|---|---|
| Keywords Iconclass |
11D
Christ
Iconclass
11D3 Christ as adult Iconclass 11D334 adult Christ together with apostles, evangelists, saints, etc. Iconclass 11F the Virgin Mary Iconclass 11F25 'Mater Dolorosa' Iconclass 31A2522 hands folded Iconclass 56BB1 Pain, Sorrow, Sadness; 'Dolore', 'Dolore di Zeusi' (Ripa) Iconclass 73 New Testament Iconclass 73C public life of Christ: from his baptism until the Passion Iconclass 73D Passion of Christ Iconclass 73D72 the mourning over the dead Christ Iconclass 73D721 lamentation over the dead Christ by his relatives and friends (Christ usually without crown of thorns) Iconclass |
| School / Style |
Symbolism (artistic concept)
AAT
historicism (theory) AAT |
| Catalogus van het Museum van Schoone Kunsten Gent : II: Moderne Meesters / Georges Chabot, Fritz Van Loo. - Gent : Ad. Hoste, 1932 (p. 135 (ill.)) |
| Museum voor Schone Kunsten Gent : Tekeningen, pastels en aquarellen; Inventaris / Moniek Nagels. - Gent : Museum voor Schone Kunsten Gent, 1988 (p. 46) |
| De vrienden van Scribe : De Europese smaak van een Gents mecenas (tentoonstelling Gent, Museum voor Schone Kunsten, 12 december 1998 - 14 maart 1999) / Monique Tahon-Vanroose, Robert Hoozee. - Gent : Snoeck-Ducaju & Zoon, 1998 ; Antwerpen : Pandora, 1998 (p. 210 (ill.)) |
| Verwantschap & Eigenheid : Belgische en Nederlandse kunst 1890-1945 (tentoonstelling Gent, Museum voor Schone Kunsten, 3.3 - 16.6.2002) / Marc Lambrechts, Piet Boyens, Robert Hoozee, Johan De Smet, John Steen. - Gent : Tijdsbeeld, 2002 ; Amsterdam : Amsterdam University Press, 2002 (p. 124 (ill.)) |
| Affinités & particularités : L' art en Belgique et aux Pays-Bas 1890 - 1945 (exposition Gand, musée des Beaux-Arts, 03.03 - 16.06.2002) / Marc Lambrechts, Piet Boyens, Johan De Smet, John Steen, Robert Hoozee. - Gand : Tijdsbeeld, 2002 ; Amsterdam : Amsterdam University Press, 2002 (p. 124 (ill.)) |
| Spiegel van mijn ziel : de tekenkunst van Jakob Smits, 1855-1928 / Piet Deceuninck. - Mol : Stichting Ronald Luyten/Jakob Smits, 2019 ; Mol : vzw Vrienden van het JSM, 2019 (p. 101) |
| Jakob Smits : Driemaandelijks tijdschrift. - Mol : Vrienden van het Jakob Smitsmuseum, 1977- (p.19) |
|
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