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| Melissa Conn & St. Mark Enthroned with Saints Cosmas & Damian, Rocco & Sebastian by Titan |
Saint Mark Enthroned with Saints Cosmas and Damian, Roch and Sebastian was one of Titian's earliest works, thought to be his first independent commission (1508-9). The great Venetian artist lied about his age, so we are not exactly sure how old Titian was when he painted it -- he was born about 1488, so around 20-years-old, which seems astonishing given the sophistication of the work. At that time Venice was worried about being stricken by the deadly plague, which was viewed as divine punishment, so not only was Saint Mark the Evangelist evoked, but also four other saints whose super powers include their ability to ward off illnesses. The painting was originally executed for the Church of Santo Spirito in Isola, but in 1656 it was transferred to the Madonna della Salute, one of Venice's most spectacular votive churches.
Who are the Five Saints?
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| Saint Mark Enthroned with Saints Cosmas and Damian, Roch and Sebastian by Titian (1508-09) |
Saint Mark is the patron saint of Venice. He is one of the four evangelists, and the author of the Gospel of Mark. He founded the Christian Church of Alexandria in 49AD, which displeased the pagan leaders, so they tied a rope around his neck and dragged him through the streets until he died. Saint Mark's symbol is the winged lion, which is also the symbol of Venice. Venetian merchants stole his body from Alexandria in 828, and brought his relics here to Venice where an angel had declared his body would rest, according to legend. Today you can find Saint Mark's relics on the high altar inside the Basilica of San Marco.
Saints Cosmas and Damian - the Doctors
Saints Cosmas and Damian were twin brothers. Both were doctors and, more importantly, Christians -- Christians who worked for free -- "unmercenary physicians" -- around the year 300, during the time when the Emperor Diocletian was targeting Christians who did not comply with Roman religious practices. Diocletian was a conservative right-wing Roman who was determined to crush the expanding infidel, which, at that time, were Christians. Refusing to recant their faith, Cosmas and Damian were tortured: hung on a cross, stoned, shot with arrows and then beheaded.
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| Cosmas and Damian |
Saint Sebastian lived around the same time as Cosmas and Damian, and was known for his miraculous ability to heal -- he's the go-to saint in times of sickness and pestilence. Sebastian was the commander of Emperor Diocletian's bodyguards -- the emperor obviously did not know Sebastian was actually a Christian. So when Diocletian would haul in someone who would refuse to sacrifice to the Roman gods, Sebastian would convert them to Christianity on the sly. When Diocletian found out one of his own guards was converting prisoners to Christianity, he had Sebastian shot full of arrows, which is how he is often portrayed in works of art.
However, Sebastian did not die. He was rescued by Irene of Rome, who nursed him back to health. Sebastian then went straight back to a staircase where Diocletian was passing and condemned the emperor for targeting Christians, which did not go over too well with Diocletian -- not only was Sebastian not dead, he had not learned to keep his mouth shut. Diocletian had Sebastian clubbed to death and thrown into a sewer. As the centuries went on, people would pray to Sebastian as a defense against the plague, which is why he is in Titian's painting with the doctors.
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| Roch and Sebastian |
Saint Roch did not come along until about a thousand years later, around 1300. He was a French nobleman from Montpellier, the son of the governor, who gave up his worldly goods to tend to the sick. He came to Italy during the plague, and could heal the ill with just the sign of the cross or the touch of his hand. When he himself became ill, he went to the forest, where he was tended by a hunting dog who brought him bread (and eventually his owner).
When he became well, Roch returned to Montpellier incognito where his uncle, now the governor, (not knowing who Roch was) threw him in prison for being a spy, where Roch died. But Roch, too, had become a popular figure invoked for deliverance from the plague -- even though he was not a proper saint. The Venetians brought Roch's body to Venice in 1485, where a church, hospital and confraternity were erected in his honor. Roch was not officially canonized until Pope Gregory XIV came along in 1590, so when Titan painted him in this painting around 1510, Roch was a saint-in-waiting. His body is here in Venice in the Church of San Rocco.
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| Melissa Conn Honored with Titian at Salute |
That David and Ellen Rosand have honored Melissa Conn with the restoration of a Titian in her name illustrates the high esteem in which she is held not only within the organization, but within the city of Venice. Melissa herself selected the painting that would be restored, which she said was a "tremendous responsibility." The powerful Saint Mark Enthroned was a wise choice -- a compelling votive painting inside a formidable votive church. With such illustrious saints watching Saint Mark's back, the freshly-restored painting should hold the Lord's attention for another thousand years.
The Female Obama Contingent in Venice
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| First Lady Michelle Obama arrives in Venice - Photo: La Nuova di Venezia e Mestre |
However, on Saturday morning (after a hearty breakfast of cereal) they did manage to make it out to the Biennale International Contemporary Art Festival, where they met Joan Jonas, the artist of the award-winning United States Pavilion, and curator Paul Ha. Paolo Baratta, the President of La Biennale, accompanied them across the bridge for an impromptu visit to the pavilions of Syria, Egypt and Poland. Michelle exclaimed that she thought the exhibition, "amazing." She said that a lot of her friends told her that she had to see the Venice Biennale, and that she was very happy to be here.
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| Joan Jonas with Michelle Obama & the gang at Biennale |
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| Michelle Obama at Restaurant B - Photo: La Nuova di Venezia e Mestre |
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| Superyacht Limitless in Venice lagoon - Photo: Cat Bauer |
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| Michelle Obama Leaving Venice- Photo: La Nuova Venezie e Mestre |
Here is one of my favorite Michelle Obama moments: the #GimmeFive dance challenge with Ellen DeGeneres. How great is it that we have a First Lady who can dance?
Michelle Obama and the female contingent of her family were here in Venice on Friday, June 19, 2015, the same evening that Melissa Conn, Director of the Venice Office of Save Venice, was honored with a Titian that had been restored in her honor.
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