Monday

Pop Up Books in Art History

I loved this post on this blog:
http://wtfarthistory.com/post/23228383437/pop-up-book
So I had to share it!

Pop-Up Book 


One day while meditating, Saint Anthony of Padua witnessed a vision of the infant Jesus who miraculously appeared to come forth from the saint’s book.  The original pop-up book was born.
El Greco (Doménikos Theotokópoulos), Saint Anthony of Padua, c. 1586, oil on canvas.  Museo nacional del Prado, MadridEl Greco (Doménikos Theotokópoulos), Saint Anthony of Padua, c. 1586, oil on canvas.  Museo nacional del Prado, Madrid
El Greco (Doménikos Theotokópoulos), Saint Anthony of Padua, c. 1586, oil on canvas.  Museo nacional del Prado, Madrid 

El Greco (Doménikos Theotokópoulos), Saint Anthony of Padua, c. 1586, oil on canvas.  Museo nacional del Prado, Madrid
Evidently the pop-up baby Jesus above was a later addition to this painting by El Greco.  WTF?  Check out the Prado’s site for more info on the painting.  [BTW, the writing on the outer pages of the book is apparently El Greco’s signature]
Pop-up Jesus can also be seen in other paintings of Saint Anthony of Padua, each time increasingly larger, like the right wing of an altarpiece by Gerard David or a charming image by Murillo.

Gerard David, Saint Anthony of Padua (detail of the Saint Michael Altarpiece), c. 1510, oil on panel Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna 

Gerard David, Saint Anthony of Padua (detail of the Saint Michael Altarpiece), c. 1510, oil on panel Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna


Gerard David, Saint Michael Altarpiece, c. 1510, oil on panel Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna 
Gerard David, Saint Michael Altarpiece, c. 1510, oil on panel Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna


Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, Saint Anthony of Padua, c. 1666, oil on canvas.  Museo Provincial de Bellas Artes, Seville 
Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, Saint Anthony of Padua, c. 1666, oil on canvas.  Museo Provincial de Bellas Artes, Seville

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