Monday, August 8, 2011

The representations of St. Sebastian in the late XVth and early XVIth Centuries may be either as a youth--e.g., Sandro Botticelli (1474) (See: Figure 9) or Antonello da Messina (1476) (See: Figure 132)--or as a man on the verge of physical maturity--e.g., Marco Zoppo (c. 1453) (See: Figure 4) or Cosimo Tura (c. 1470) (See: Figure 8)--or a mature male--e.g., Antonio Maineri (act. 1476-1495) (See: Figure 134) or Andrea Mantegna (1480) (See: Figure 6) (1490) (See: Figure 7). In the XVIIth Century one often encounters representations of the mature, well muscled male--e.g., Giulio Cesare Procaccini (c. 1610) (See: Figure 72) or Anthony van Dyck (c. 1630) (See: Figure 110). It appears that representations of the youth are no longer in fashion. But, what all the St. Sebastians have in common is that they are depicted semi-nude with a cloth covering their genitals--groin centered. Only in the rarest of instances, as noted above, is he depicted completely nude, and then usually in the XXth or XXIst Centuries. However, Hans Baldung Grien in a wood engraving of 1514 (See: Figure 154), portrays a rather mature, bearded, somewhat heavy, nude St. Sebastian. He is securely bound to a dead tree and numerous arrows pierce his body. One arrow enters at the pubic arch, amid pubic hair. The genitals appear to have been tucked between his legs. Joseph-Benoit Suvée (1743-1807) (See: Figure 155) portrays St. Sebastian divesting himself of his imperial armor and from the back, nude. While in another depiction of the martyr-saint by the same artist, shows him, pierced with arrows, bound to a tree and nude (See: Figure 156). The legs are so positioned as to hide the genitals of the saint--a modest, but unflattering position.


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