Saint Catherine of Siena and Saint Dominic receiving the rosary
Forgotten in an attic, a 17th-century painting regains its colors
An endangered work saved thanks to the #PGMF campaign
In 2019, two students are taking part in the Le Plus Grand Musée de France campaign run by Sauvegarde de l'Art Français. The aim of this operation is to enable students to sponsor a work of art and raise funds for its restoration.
After spotting a few works, they finally set about rescuing a painting of Saint Catherine of Siena and Saint Dominic receiving the rosary, preserved in the small village of Saint-Laurent-sur-Oust (Morbihan). In just a few months, they had raised the funds needed to get the project off the ground.
Saint Catherine of Siena and Saint Dominic receiving the rosary by AnonymeLa Sauvegarde de l’Art Français
A challenge to rise to
The canvas, dating from the mid-17th century, had been forgotten for decades in the attic of the village presbytery. Very damaged, it seems almost impossible to restore such a degraded work, whose legibility has become almost nil over time.
The restoration was entrusted to Justyna Verdavaine of the OCRE workshop and Kiriaki Tsesmeloglou of the K-solutions workshop. For several months, they put their restoration talents to work to bring this artwork back to life.
Saint Catherine of Siena and Saint Dominic receiving the rosary by AnonymeLa Sauvegarde de l’Art Français
Despite the very damaged appearance of the canvas, they noted that the paint layer had held well on the support. Damage caused by rolling and neglect is limited. The cleaning process enabled the gradual discovery of a palette of vivid, varied colors.
Saint Catherine of Siena and Saint Dominic receiving the rosary by AnonymeLa Sauvegarde de l’Art Français
The lower part of the work is particularly degraded: in addition to the major lacunae throughout the composition, the bottom of the canvas has been "eaten" by humidity. The work is painted on a fairly thick herringbone canvas, composed of several pieces sewn together.
Saint Catherine of Siena and Saint Dominic receiving the rosary by AnonymeLa Sauvegarde de l’Art Français
The canvas varnish is badly damaged and opacified by chanci (which forms when water condenses in the small cracks in the varnish. By capillary action, they retain a little water vapor, which condenses and creates opacity).
Saint Catherine of Siena and Saint Dominic receiving the rosary by AnonymeLa Sauvegarde de l’Art Français
Fundamental restoration
Placed under a low-pressure table, the cleaned canvas was lined and reinforced. Previously, the thick layer of red plaster supporting the canvas had been thinned to facilitate lining.
Saint Catherine of Siena and Saint Dominic receiving the rosary by AnonymeLa Sauvegarde de l’Art Français
Custom-made grafts were applied to fill the gaps in the work. The application of mastics corresponding to the colors (flesh, sky, white for the lighter parts) allowed these gaps to be reintegrated.
Saint Catherine of Siena and Saint Dominic receiving the rosary by AnonymeLa Sauvegarde de l’Art Français
A distinctive iconography
Saint Catherine of Siena and Saint Dominic receiving the rosary is a religious scene particularly popular from the 17th century onwards, and can be found in great numbers in our churches and chapels. It combines classical iconography with representations specific to the period.
The upper register features the Virgin and Child in majesty. The Child Jesus holds a rose in his left hand, symbolizing the Virgin Mary and the blood shed in the coming Passion, but also directly linked to the rosary, which was originally a crown of roses.
Saint Catherine of Siena and Saint Dominic receiving the rosary by AnonymeLa Sauvegarde de l’Art Français
They are surrounded by two angels holding a garland of fifteen medallions representing the fifteen mysteries of the Rosary.
Saint Catherine of Siena and Saint Dominic receiving the rosary by AnonymeLa Sauvegarde de l’Art Français
Behind the crucifix held by St. Catherine, we recognize King Louis XIV, kneeling, hands clasped, gazing at the divine apparition. He is followed by his mother Anne of Austria, her gaze turned towards the spectators.
Behind them, we can make out figures that are almost certainly those of the work's commissioners.
The painting at Saint-Laurent-sur-Oust therefore not only depicts La Donation du Rosaire, but also combines it with King Louis XIV's vows to the Virgin, lent to Dijon on March 25, 1650. The presence of both iconographies is intriguing, to say the least, and could symbolize the noble commissioner's allegiance to the king.
Thanks to the students' commitment to the Le Plus Grand Musée de France campaign, the expertise of the department's curator of antiquities and objets d'art, and above all the expertise of the restorers who worked on the work, this canvas, thought to have been forgotten by all and destined for destruction, has been reborn and is now on display in the village church.
"We do this job so that it can be seen by other generations. When I manage to save a piece of past work, there's a real sense of satisfaction."
J. Verdavaine, restorer.
La Sauvegarde de l'Art Français
OCRE Studio et Atelier
Atelier K-solutions
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