Christ and Sinner

Henryk Siemiradzki (1843-1902)
Christ and Sinner. The First Meeting of Christ and Mary Magdalene. 1873.
Oil on canvas. 550 x 350 cm.
The Russian Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia.

Henryk Siemiradzki (1843-1902) was a Polish Academic painter. He was particularly known for his depictions of scenes from the ancient Graeco-Roman world and the New Testament.

From 1864 until 1870 he studied painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Saint-Petersburg. There he was to become an adherent of the academic classicism taught there.

He also studied at Munich under Piloty. Later he went to Rome, where he permanently settled.

Christ and Sinner. The First Meeting of Christ and Mary Magdalene (1872), brought him success and European fame. In his works, landscape is an important feature which unites the charatcters and theme. He painted several paintings on this theme.

His body is now in the national Pantheon on Skałka in Kraków.