Artwork
Christ
Christ is an oil painting by the American Impressionist artist Kenyon Cox. It dates from 1905 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The piece is catalogued as part of the museum’s religious art collection, underscoring its significance within American ecclesiastical art.
The work titled 'Christ' (1905) by Kenyon Cox presents a conventional iconography of Jesus, rendered in oil on canvas. The composition emphasizes the figure’s solemn gaze and outstretched hand, typical of devotional imagery, while the surrounding space lacks narrative detail, focusing attention on the central symbol of redemption. As a religious painting in the Cleveland Museum of Art, it functions as a visual embodiment of Christ’s sacrificial role, inviting contemplation of spiritual sacrifice.
The piece is catalogued as part of the museum’s religious art collection, underscoring its significance within American ecclesiastical art.
Technique & Style
Kenyon Cox's Christ is executed in oil paint on canvas, a traditional combination well suited to the work's religious subject. The painting measures 137.0 cm in height by 91.5 cm in width, giving it a vertically oriented, modestly large format that supports a single full-length figural composition. Its classification as a painting and its genre designation as religious art align with the medium's historical association with devotional imagery.
The work is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art, where its canvas support and oil-based handling are consistent with standard early-twentieth-century American academic practice.
History & Provenance
The painting Christ by Kenyon Cox is dated to 1905, as recorded in both the artist’s corpus and the Cleveland Museum of Art’s records. Executed in oil on canvas, the work was gifted to the Cleveland Museum of Art in 1920 (accession no. 1920.150), where it remains in the collection. No documented commission records or pre-1905 preparatory materials are cited in the sources, indicating the work was likely completed in 1905 as an independent religious painting.
The provenance begins with its acquisition by the museum in 1920, with no earlier ownership history provided in the available documentation.
The painting Christ (1905) by Kenyon Cox is held at the Cleveland Museum of Art, where it is accessioned as 1920.150. The work, an oil on canvas measuring 137.0 cm in height and 91.5 cm in width, was created in the United States and depicts Jesus Christ as its primary subject. The painting is classified within the museum’s collection as religious art and has been documented in the institution’s holdings since its accession.
Overview
Kenyon Cox completed his oil painting, titled Christ, in 1905. This religious work is currently housed in the collection of The Cleveland Museum of Art. The artwork presents a traditional depiction of Jesus Christ, rendered with a focus on solemnity and classical form, characteristic of Cox's academic approach to figure painting.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Kenyon Cox was an American painter, illustrator, muralist, writer, and teacher. Cox was an influential and important early instructor at the Art Students League of New York. He was the designer of the League's logo,…
