St. Simon the Apostle:
ANNOTATED
Simon marks his page with his finger, pausing to look up at the viewer. The BOOK , likely a copy of the biblical New Testament, refers to the years he spent preaching in Egypt and Persia. Its soft, unadorned leather cover resembles a typical 17th-century binding. The strings attached to the front and back covers were used to tie the book together, ensuring the delicate pages inside remained safe. Simon offers the viewer the SAW grasped in his left hand and asks viewers to consider its meaning. Here, the saw serves as a symbol and iconic motif associated with his life and is used to identify him in religious art. Most saints and important figures have a fairly standard set of attributes that appeared alongside them in early modern art. In Simon’s case, the saw alludes to the most popular story of his death: he was martyred in Persia by being sawed in half. Salvator Rosa signed this painting with his INITIALS , SR, which you can see etched into the top of the saw blade. Although most Italian baroque artists signed their paintings in some way, they typically used their full name. Rosa’s layered monogram recalls the signatures of northern European artists, who often hid their initials on or near objects.
Although Simon is a saint, he does not have an obvious HALO indicating his exalted status. The painting’s only illumination comes from an unseen light source to the left that casts the saint in dramatic chiaroscuro, a popular Baroque style characterized by bold contrasts between light and dark. Rosa may have intended the diffused light behind Simon’s head and the right side of his body as a halo substitute, granting the saint an air of otherworldliness without detracting from his unidealized appearance. WRINKLES line Simon’s time-worn face and hands, and his messy, graying hair frames his rugged, ruddy cheeks. His mundane, unidealized appearance lends an air of realness and relatability absent in earlier depictions of saints. Rosa’s decision to use a real person as a model reflects the shift towards naturalism in baroque art, prompted by the desire to create a connection between holy figures and the not- so-holy viewer. In keeping with Counter-Reformation art trends of the time, the piece evokes viewers’ emotional connections and personal acquaintance with holy figures.
Salvator Rosa (Neapolitan, 1615 - 1673), “St. Simon the Apostle,” ca. 1639. Oil on canvas, 49 1/8 × 37 1/2 inches. Georgia Museum of Art, University of Georgia; The Samuel H. Kress Study Collection. GMOA 1961.1888.
Annotation by Katherine Rabogliatti
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