Saint Rosalia and the Hunter

Andrea Badami, Saint Rosalia and the Hunter, 1970-1973, oil on canvas, 38 ⁷⁄₈ x 58 ⁵⁄₈ in. (98.7 x 148.9 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr. and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson, 1986.65.98

Artwork Details

Title: Saint Rosalia and the Hunter
Artist: Andrea Badami
Date: 1970-1973
Location: Not on view
Dimensions: 38 ⁷⁄₈ x 58 ⁵⁄₈ in. (98.7 x 148.9 cm.)
Credit Line: Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr. and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson
Mediums: oil
Mediums Description: oil on canvas
Classifications: Painting
Subjects: Religion — saint — St. Rosalia
Figure male — full length
Occupation — hunter
Animal — dog
Object Number: 1986.65.98
Linked Open Data: https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1986.65.98

Artwork Description

Andrea Badami created many paintings inspired by religious themes, possibly because he found it easier to express his beliefs in pictures than through his limited English. This image shows Saint Rosalia, the patron saint of Palermo, Sicily. The city suffered a plague epidemic in 1624 and according to local legend Rosalia appeared to one of the victims. She showed him the cave in Mount Pellegrino where her remains were buried, and when they carried her bones through the city, the plague was swept away (Alban Butler, Lives of the Saints, vol. 3, 1963). Badami’s painting shows a man and his dog with the saint in the entrance to her cave. The rainbow of light coming from the candle inside the cave underscores Rosalia’s mission as a divine messenger.