Le Christ et la Samaritaine, école anversoise du XVIIème siècle

Mid-17th centuryAntwerp school 
Oil on oak panel, dim. h. 27 cm, l. 35.5 cm
Unidentified panel maker's mark on the back of the panel: EB
Ebonized and moulded Dutch-style wooden frame
Framed: h. 46.5 cm, l. 55.5 cm

Our work illustrates an episode recounted in the Gospel of Saint John: the meeting of Jesus with the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well in Samaria. Overturning prejudices Jesus shows himself to be free with regard to the social, cultural and religious rules of his time which prohibited contacts of Jews with Samaritans and public meetings with women. In a landscape, Jesus and the Samaritan woman dominate the foreground. On the left, Christ, bearded and hair down, is seated on a block of stone at the edge of a well and placed in three-quarter view. He is dressed in a red and purplish drape: he raises his right arm, the palm of his hand open, while his other hand rests on the edge of the well. He looks with intense empathy at the woman standing in front of him, the Samaritan woman. Coming to draw water from the well, she turns three quarters with her eyes downcast and does not look at Jesus. The well which separates them seems to be erected as a wall of separation between our two protagonists Dressed in yellow, white and green clothing, and with her hair tied in a bun with a ribbon, the Samaritan woman pulls with her right hand on the chain allowing them to descend the jug to draw water from it, while his left hand rests on the edge of the well. In the background, lower right, the three apostles arriving from the city discover the scene. The composition is located in a mineral and mountainous landscape, from which a few trees emerge in places, with the city of Sychar in Samaria in the background. On the horizon is a gray sky, lit by a breakthrough of light. The cool tones contrast with the warm tones placed in the middle and bottom of the painting. The earthy foreground with yellow and brown ochres is enriched by the skillfully executed vegetation. The composition is structured in the background around two main characters who both benefit from strong lighting, the divine light illuminating both Jesus and the Samaritan woman indicating the acceptance of the sinner in the kingdom of heaven.