Photo courtesy Birmingham Museum of Art.
“Christ with Instruments of the Passion,” a painting from 1485 by Jacopo díArchangelo del Sellio of Italy. It is one of the works in the exhibit.
Jesus is not only an important historical and spiritual figure but a pervasive subject in the history of visual art.
The Birmingham Museum of Art is currently tracing these depictions of Christ in the exhibit, “Embodying Faith: Imagining Jesus through the Ages,” on display through April 21.
Drawn mostly from the BMA’s collection, “Embodying Faith” includes 30 images of Jesus spanning 600 years.
The artists come from many places, including Italy, France, Ethiopia and Fayette County, Alabama. And the works include prints, drawings, paintings, sculpture, quilts, flags and books.
”This exhibition encourages visitors to explore the many ways artists represented the life of Jesus and how these traditions and conventions changed with time and place,” said Dr. Robert Schindler, BMA curator of European art.
Viewers can learn more about the way in which artists of similar faith could produce very different pieces.
“Works that in essence express the same narrative could have widely different aesthetics and purposes,” Schindler said. “Depictions of the crucifixion, for instance, could focus on the symbolic meaning of his death, imagine the historical setting or aim to evoke an emotional response in the viewer.”
Admission is free. For details, call 254-2565 or go to artsbma.org.
