Artwork
The Conversion of Saint Paul
The Conversion of Saint Paul is an oil painting by the Mannerist artist Jacopo Tintoretto. It dates from 1544 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The composition serves as a visual narrative of spiritual awakening and the dramatic shift from hostility to faith.
Jacopo Tintoretto’s The Conversion of Saint Paul depicts the pivotal biblical moment when the Apostle Paul is transformed by a divine vision on the road to Damascus. As a work of religious art, the painting centers on the main subject of Paul the Apostle’s conversion, illustrating the sudden intervention of God that halts his persecution of Christians. The composition serves as a visual narrative of spiritual awakening and the dramatic shift from hostility to faith.
Created in 1545, the oil on canvas captures the intensity of this transformative event, emphasizing the theological significance of divine grace overriding human will.
Technique & Style
The Conversion of Saint Paul is an oil painting executed on canvas in 1545. The work measures 152 centimeters in height by 236 centimeters in width and belongs to the religious genre. It was created by Jacopo Tintoretto, a Venetian master of the late Renaissance, and is part of the Samuel H. Kress Collection housed at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. The painting’s support is a canvas, and it was originally executed in oil paint, a medium typical of Venetian workshops of the period.
History & Provenance
Commissioned and painted in 1545, the work is an early religious canvas by Jacopo Tintoretto.
It was likely housed in the Palazzo Pisani a Santo Stefano in Venice until around 1809. By 1857 it belonged to George William Fox, 9th Baron Kinnaird at Rossie Priory in Perthshire, Scotland. In 1939 it was acquired by Count Alessandro Contini Bonacossi in Florence.
The painting was sold to the Samuel H. Kress Foundation in June 1954 and subsequently gifted to the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., in 1961.
The Conversion of Saint Paul is held in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., as part of the Samuel H. Kress Collection. The work entered the gallery's holdings in 1961 as a gift from the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, following its acquisition by the foundation in June 1954. Prior to this transfer, the painting passed through several significant private collections.
It was likely located in the Palazzo Pisani a Santo Stefano in Venice until approximately 1809. By 1857, the work was in the possession of George William Fox, 9th Baron Kinnaird, at Rossie Priory in Perthshire, Scotland. Later, it was owned by Count Alessandro Contini Bonacossi in Florence by 1939 before being sold to the Kress Foundation.
Overview
Tintoretto's The Conversion of Saint Paul, created around 1544, depicts the pivotal biblical narrative of Saul's transformation into Saint Paul. Rendered in oil on canvas, this painting exemplifies the Venetian artist's energetic style during the late Renaissance. It presents a dynamic and multi-figure composition, characteristic of both his personal approach and the emerging Mannerist tendencies of the era, capturing a moment of profound spiritual drama.
Context
Working in Venice during the mid-16th century, Tintoretto developed an unconventional style that diverged from some classical ideals of the High Renaissance. His contemporaries held varied opinions on his approach, with some praising his innovative energy while others questioned his rapid and less refined technique. This work reflects the artistic ferment of the late Renaissance, a period where new expressive possibilities and dramatic compositions were actively explored by artists.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
Artist
Jacopo Robusti (late September or early October 1518 – 31 May 1594), best known as Tintoretto ( TIN-tə-RET-oh; Italian:; Venetian: ), was an Italian Renaissance painter of the Venetian school.
