Vigilante et Orate, by Sir Joseph Noel Paton, RSA

Vigilate et Orate

Sir Joseph Noel Paton, RSA

1884-85

The Sandringham Museum

This is the central painting of a triptych, so it has two paintings on either side. Those two are replicas of larger originals, but this one is an original, commissioned by Queen Victoria as the centrepiece. The works were for the private chapel at Osborne on the Isle of Wight, and were installed there in 1885, but later given by Queen Mary to St Mary's Church, Anmer, near Sandringham in Norfolk. The triptych deteriorated because of the damp and in 1985 was brought to Sandringham House and restored. The church currently displays only copies of the works. [Commentary continues below.]

Photograph and text by Jacqueline Banerjee, with thanks to the museum for allowing photography. Click on the image to enlarge it, and mouse over the text for links,

You may use this image without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the photographer and museum, and (2) link your document to this URL in a web document or cite it in a print one.

The Art Journal discussion of Paton looks at the painting in some detail:

The scene of Vigilate et Orate is in the Garden of Gethsemane, and represents the terrible hour of Christ’s trial before the betrayal. He has just returned, after his time of anguish, alone, to find the three disciples, whom he had left a short time before to watch and pray, asleep. Peter, the most valorous of all the Apostles, is seen just newly overcome, his head resting on his knees, and his sword apparently about to slip from his grasp. James sits more erect, his features revealing more fully, in his deep slumber, the care and anxiety which oppress his spirit. John is stretched upon the ground, his sympathetic countenance, full of tenderness and affection, lighted up with the reflection of the dawn, which is stealing its way through the trees and the slight mist which still half conceals them — the illumination beautifully suggesting the likeness which is already arising in the disciple, who is to be the preacher, to the Master, who is the author of the gospel of love. But while there are these points of resemblance between the two, there are also striking points of contrast, as, for instance, the trustfulness of John’s expression and the suffering depicted in the face of the Saviour. [114-15]

However, Richard A. Schindler sees more to criticise in the disciples, finding here Jesus's confrontation with human frailty:

The central scene, in contrast to the wings, presents the dilemma of Christ's recognition that his sacrifice might be in vain, because of the human weaknesses of his followers. Christ staggers with this sudden realization. One hand grasps at his cloak and, with the other, he braces his body against a tree. This scene accentuates the human side of Christ's suffering. The triptych, then, concentrates on Christ's role as mediator between the mortal and the divine worlds. The imagery of this group appealed both to the public, who saw it either in exhibition or in an engraving, and the official world of the Queen and her family, who set up the Prayer Room as a memorial to Prince Albert. [120]

Schindler recognises that recent critics have found Paton too conventional, but feels there is greater depth here than has been realised, and that in general "his religious imagery deserves careful study" (121).

Related Material

Bibliography

Schindler, Richard A. "Sir Noel Paton and the Grail Quest: The Arthurian Mythos as Christian Art." The Arthurian Revival: Essays on Form, Tradition, and Transformation. Ed. Debra Mancoff. New ed. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge, 2015. 115-31.

"Sir Joseph Noël Paton, His Life and Work." Art Journal. Vol. 57 (1895). 97-128. Internet Archive. Contributed by the Getty Research Institute. Web. 3 October 2018.

Created 3 October 2018