The Annunciation
Mikhail Nesterov

The Annunciation is one of our favorite subjects for art, and it must have been for Mikhail Nesterov, too, because he painted many versions of it. We love that moment, when Jesus came to Earth and Salvation began. It's that instant when Heaven and Earth are re-joined, a beautiful, incredibly profound point in time.

Nesterov's style, which has a dreamy, symbolic quality, is perfect to represent that moment. This version was done in 1911 as a diptych on the wall of a convent. We've tried to preserve that effect by bringing the two closer together, separated by their frames.

Generally there are two ways artists do the Annunciation. One is with a powerful Gabriel bringing down the power of Heaven to a small Hebrew girl, or the other way is to have a subservient Gabriel humbling himself before the Queen of Heaven. Both ways are valid. The first way is as it happened historically, and the second is how it turned out later. We have a slight personal preference for the former, in which, like in this painting, we have a demure Mary, not a queenly one. This reflects her nature as being one of us, albeit the best of us, and a humble servant of the Lord.

** 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. All Approx! Fine art printers do this because the images are almost never the same rectangular ratio of the standard paper sizes. It also gives the prints a finished look, and lets them look good in a frame without a matt.

- Acid-free paper
- Archival pigments, rated to last for generations.
- Cardboard backer
- 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 - CatholicArtAndJewelry.