Saint John of the Cross (San Juan de la Cruz)

Francisco Antonio Gijón

National Gallery of Art

A pale-skinned man wearing voluminous robes under a monk’s hood is carved from wood and painted in this freestanding sculpture. In this photograph, the man’s body faces us as he tips his head to our left and back to look up in that direction. His lips are parted, and his square chin is shaded with a five o’clock shadow. His gray hair is curly over each ear, and the top of his head is bald. He holds his right hand, to our left, up with his thumb and first two fingers almost touching. He holds an open book in the flat of his other hand. A rocky formation on the pages, the edges of which curl up, could be a flame. The man’s hood is pushed back, and the ivory-white, knee-length cloak drapes heavily over his shoulders and parts over his spread arms. He wears a long robe painted earthy brown that reaches his sandaled feet. Both the cloak and robe are edged with gold along the hems and painted with gold, leafy designs. The sleeves of his robe hang wide around his wrists. He stands with his weight on his right foot and the other foot thrust a bit forward on a square, wood base. The sculpture is photographed against a white background.