With Covid-19 shuttering our long awaited Harold Stevenson exhibit, we bring a quick YouTube walk through the gallery. One of the 54 pieces is particularly fitting during these times. Art in Community: The Harold Stevenson Collections exhibit has been extended through August 23, 2020.
Patron Saint of Archers
Regarded as the patron saint of the persecuted, soldiers, athletes, and archers, Saint Sebastian (ca. AD 256 – 288) promoted Christianity during the time of the Roman Empire. For his beliefs he was stripped naked, tied to a tree, and shot with arrows by order of the Roman Emperor. Left for dead, he was discovered by Irene of Rome and nursed back to health. Once recovered, he sought out the Emperor and openly criticized him for the persecution of Christians. This time, Sebastian was beaten to death. Sebastian’s life and story of courage, dedication, and strength led to his being crowned a saint of martyrdom in the year 288, in Rome, Italy. One of the more notable paintings is the Saint Sebastian by Sodoma II in 1525. It is at the Galleria Palatina in Florence Italy. It is probable Stevenson viewed Sodoma II’s Saint Sebastian and learned more about the artist who was known to mostly paint in Siena Italy, visited by Stevenson in 1955.
Shot with an Arrow, the Bubonic Plague
During the 14th century, the Bubonic Plague, or Black Death, ravaged Europe, killing 75 million people. At the time, people were unaware as to how the disease was transmitted. They likened it to being shot with an arrow, by the army of nature’s archers. They prayed to the saint of archers for relief from the deadly pandemic (Pirlo 1997). As COVID-19 frightens our global society today, invoke St. Sebastian to be our protector.
March 10 – August 23, 2020
Saint Sebastian, 1979
Harold Stevenson, American (1929-2018)
Acrylic on canvas
80 x 76 in.
Loan, Courtesy of Mary Ann and Ken C. Fergeson