Copy after Christ and Disciples at Emmaus, Fra Bartolomeo in the Convent of San Marco (Florence)

Kaiser’s watercolor translates the fresco’s color palette and compositional structure into a portable medium, preserving the delicate modeling and chiaroscuro characteristic of Fra Bartolomeo’s work. The original fresco combined Florentine draftsmanship with the richer coloration Fra Bartolomeo absorbed during his later years in Venice, a synthesis reflected in the watercolor’s balanced tones.

Fra Bartolomeo, a Dominican friar and follower of Savonarola, painted the San Marco frescoes after joining the order in 1500.

Fra Bartolomeo, a Dominican friar and follower of Savonarola, painted the San Marco frescoes after joining the order in 1500. The frescoes were later documented by Kaiser, whose copy was commissioned by the Arundel Society, an organization founded in 1848 to promote art education through reproductions. The watercolor entered the museum collection as part of the society’s 19th‑century publishing program.

In the mid‑19th century, the Arundel Society played a key role in reviving interest in Italian Old Masters and earlier ‘primitive’ art. By reproducing works like Fra Bartolomeo’s Emmaus scene, the society helped integrate Renaissance visual culture into broader scholarly and public awareness during a period of growing historicist appreciation.