Flemish school; 17th century.

Flemish school; XVII century.
"Saint Saturius".
Oil on copper.
Measurements: 27 x 22 cm; 32 x 27 cm (frame).
San Saturio is represented here by means of a sober and concentrated composition that fully responds to the models of the baroque devotional painting. The saint is represented in bust, cut out on a neutral and dark background that eliminates any spatial reference and directs all the attention towards his effigy, conceived almost as a testa-relic, as it seemed by the pedestal and the reliquary of the chest.
Saint Saturius, a hermit venerated especially in the city of Soria, was an ascetic who, according to tradition, abandoned his possessions to retire to a solitary life in the caves of Mount Oria, where he devoted himself to prayer and penance. Her figure embodies the Christian ideal of renunciation of the world and the search for spiritual perfection through isolation and austerity, values highly appreciated in Baroque spirituality.
From the formal point of view, the work stands out for the contained realism with which the saint's features are modeled, balanced by a slight idealization that ennobles his expression and reinforces his sacred character. The light falls precisely on the face, emphasizing the texture of the skin and the intensity of the gaze, while the dark background acts as a symbolic resource, separating the saint from the earthly realm. The copper support, common in Flemish painting, allows a meticulous execution and a smooth surface that intensifies the chromatic richness and the definition of the detail.