Artwork
Portrait of a young man as St. Sebastian
Portrait of a young man as St. Sebastian is an oil painting by the Mannerist artist Antonis Mor. It dates from 1546 and is held in the collection of the Bavarian State Painting Collections. Portrait of a young man as St.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The depiction invites viewers to associate the sitter with the virtues of steadfast faith and endurance traditionally linked to Sebastian’s iconography.
Portrait of a young man as St. Sebastian shows a male sitter posed in the guise of the early Christian martyr Saint Sebastian. By presenting the individual as a saint, the work blends the conventions of portraiture with religious imagery, a combination reflected in its classification as both a portrait and a religious painting. The depiction invites viewers to associate the sitter with the virtues of steadfast faith and endurance traditionally linked to Sebastian’s iconography.
Technique & Style
The work is painted in oil on wood panel, a format confirmed by material analysis and cataloguing records. Its dimensions measure 80 cm in height by 69 cm in width, matching the recorded size of the piece in the Bavarian State Painting Collections. The composition presents a half-length portrait of a youthful sitter posed in the traditional stance of Saint Sebastian, rendered with a restrained palette and careful modeling of flesh tones that reflect the influence of Netherlandish portraiture while retaining Mor's distinctive attention to detail in clothing and accessories.
The handling of light across the figure's torso and the subtle gradations of shadow contribute to a three-dimensional presence, while the crisp delineation of the arrow wound and the delicate rendering of the gaze underscore the work's formal precision and its devotional emphasis on martyrdom.
History & Provenance
Portrait of a young man as St. Sebastian was created by Antonis Mor in 1546, executed in oil paint on panel. The work subsequently entered the Bavarian State Painting Collections and is held at the Alte Pinakothek in Munich. No further details of commission, intermediate ownership, or acquisition history are documented in the available sources.
The Portrait of a young man as St. Sebastian is housed in the Bavarian State Painting Collections at the Alte Pinakothek in Munich. It was created by Antonis Mor in 1546 and is cataloged under the accession number 1818 (1869). The work has been exhibited in major retrospectives of Mor's oeuvre, including a 2018 exhibition at the Kunsthistorisches Museum that highlighted his contributions to Mannerist portraiture.
Overview
Portrait of a young man as St. Sebastian is a 1546 oil painting by Netherlandish Mannerist artist Antonis Mor. The work combines portraiture with the traditional depiction of the Christian martyr Saint Sebastian.
Context
As a Mannerist piece, it blends the traditional saint's narrative with the realism of portraiture, characteristic of the era's artistic experimentation.
Legacy
Through its innovative style and Mor's broader influence on European portraiture, the painting contributes to the evolution of artistic traditions in the 16th century.
Artist & collection
Artist
Anthonis Mor, also known as Anthonis Mor van Dashorst and Antonio Moro (c. 1517 – 1577), was a Netherlandish portrait painter, much in demand by the courts of Europe. He has also been referred to as Antoon, Anthonius,…
Portrait of a Man, Possibly Ottavio Farnese (1524–1586), Duke of Parma and Piacenza
Portrait of a Gentleman
Portrait of Mary Tudor
Emperor Maximilian II
Philippe de Montmorency
Portrait of Sir Thomas Gresham, pendant to portrait of Anne Fernely
Portrait of Philippe de Montmorency, Count of Hoorne, Admiral of the Netherlands, Member of the Council of State
Portrait of Anne Fernely, pendant to Sir Thomas Gresham
