‘St Catherine of Alexandria’ by Solari, 1514 (Religious Sculpture in Venice)

when was it made?

1514

who does it depict?

St Catherine of Alexandria who wanted to convert people to Christianity, she was imprisoned, whilst in prison she wanted to continue to spread the word of God through he wisdom

she was regarded as…

intelligent

who was she the patron saint for?

patron saint of scholars and philosophers / patron saint to guard against sudden death

why was it important to depict her?

the plague spreading in Venice through boats, she acted as hope as well as a marker of renaissance ideologies

what symbol is on the base and what does it represent?

the stemma with he symbol of Venice is the lion drawing of St Marc

what does her left leg rest upon?

Her left leg rests upon the head of the Holy Roman Emperor, therefore this image is an allegory for the triumph of Christianity over paganism (any religion that is not Christian)

what are the renaissance focuses?

• Attention to drapery, the static-like fabric clings to her body revealing the attention to anatomy

• The Greco-Roman attire e.g. sandals, quaffed hair, and drapery

• Verismo of her face, individuality and sense of personality

• Standing in contrapposto

• Naturalism of her pose, relaxed and informal

• Highly polished, brittle qualities of marble allow for the gathering of drapery

• The Holy Roman Emperor looks as though he could have come from from that era