1655
oil
canvas
From the collection of Art Institute of Chicago
Christ Receiving the Children is a 1655 oil by Sébastien Bourdon, a Baroque work, held at Art Institute of Chicago.
The painting shows Jesus sitting with children and his disciples around him. He's telling the disciples to let the kids come to him. The people in the painting wear old-fashioned clothes, like from ancient Rome. The artist made the scene look like it's from a long time ago. To learn more about this style, look at the work of Sébastien Bourdon's influence, Nicolas Poussin, or check out the technique of chiaroscuro.
In this illustration of an episode from the Gospel of Mark in the New Testament, Jesus (reclining at center) admonishes his disciples not to prevent little children from approaching him. Sébastien Bourdon’s figures wear draperies in the antique fashion, and the setting evokes both ancient Rome and the Christian Holy Land. One of the most versatile and successful 17th-century French painters, Bourdon emulated the rigorous classical style of Nicolas Poussin. Bourdon knew Poussin’s work (such as the painting on view in this gallery) from his early years in Rome. Following Poussin’s compositional…
Probably Chiquet de Champ-Renard, Paris; sold Joullain fils, Paris, March 14 and following, 1768, suppl. 3, to Joullain fils, Paris, for 815 livres [the measurements given, which may refer to the sight size, are equal to 98.7 x 129.8 cm; price and buyer are listed in an annotated sale catalogue in the R.K.D., The Hague]. Probably John Joshua Proby, first earl of Carysfort (died 1828), Elton, Huntingdonshire, and London; sold Christie’s, London, June 14, 1828, no. 38, to Gilmor for 35 gns. 14 s [according to annotated sale catelogue, Christie's London]. Robert Frank, Bristol, by 1938 […
Bristol Museum and Art Gallery, French Art, 1600–1800, 1938, cat. 3A. New World’s Fair, Masterpieces of Art: European and American Paintings, 1500–1900, 1940, cat. 63. New Haven, Yale University Art Gallery, Pictures Collected by Yale Alumni, 1956, cat. 7. Chicago, Smart Museum of Art, Classicisms from February 16-June 11, 2017.
Read the full account in the museum source.
Sébastien Bourdon (French pronunciation: ; 2 February 1616 – 8 May 1671) was a French painter and engraver. His chef d'œuvre is The Crucifixion of St. Peter made for the cathedral of Notre Dame.
See the richer artist page
