"Cloister in Palermo with a Franciscan Monk"
Martinus Rorbye

This peaceful painting captures the quiet stillness of the contemplative life. We overlook a monk who is looking at the enclosed cloister garden of his Franciscan monastery. Prayer and the Mediterranean sun have soaked this place for centuries, based on a real cloister. It is serene and beautiful. Scenes of this kind of prayer life bring calm to us.

The painter, Martinus Rorbye (1803-1848), was a famous, well-traveled Danish painter who was successful with a broad range of subjects. Traveling further than many of his contemporaries, he spent a lot of time in the Mediterranean areas. In Italy, especially in Palermo, Sicily, he did several monastery paintings, including this one, our favorite. He did another one which is a larger view of the cloister itself, sans monk, which we like almost as much, but the figure of the monk here draws us into the quiet eddies of prayer which fill this place. This painting was done in 1840. Oil on canvas. 50×38 cm.
(source: wikipedia.com)

** IMPORTANT ** The image is smaller than the paper! There is a white border of about 0.5" inch for 5x7", 1.3" for 8.5x11, or 1.6" for 11x14" pictures, 1.75" for larger sizes. The border gives the prints a finished look, and lets them look good in frames without using a matt.

- Acid-free paper
- Archival pigments, rated to last for generations.
- Cardboard backer on smaller sizes.
- Above story of the art
- Enclosed in a tight-fitting, crystal clear bag.

Thanks for your interest!

Thanks!
Sue & John

"In order to communicate the message entrusted to her by Christ, the Church needs art." ~ St. Pope John Paul II

Original image is out-of-copyright. Descriptive text and image alterations (hence the whole new image) © by Sue Kouma Johnson - Classic Catholic Art.