Here is a woman in the odor of sanctity. Still and silent, St. Elizabeth of Hungary, canonized in the 13th century, stands out pale against a darker background composed of thin lines. The glow of rose gold illuminates it. Divine intervention! The flowers replace the loaves she distributed to the poor against her husband's advice.

After studying at the Academy, first in Vienna and then in Paris, List made friends with Gustave Klimt. In 1905 they founded the Second Viennese Secession, which rose up against a sclerotic art. His painting is also characterized by its female figures, inspired by Nordic poetry, medieval history and mythology. In 1907 he participated in the group's exhibition, for which he painted a triptych dedicated to Saint Elizabeth from which this panel is taken.

Exhibited in Vienna, the triptych was immediately dispersed. The museum retains the two side panels. The central, horizontal element is kept in another collection.

List was inspired by early Renaissance painters with his choice of tempera, a painting linked to the egg, a technique used in the creation of icons and frescoes. The use of gold also contributes to this approach, as in the works of the Sienese Bartolo di Fredi and Sano Di Pietro.

A plastic expression of symbolist literature, this painting wants to be contrary to visible reality and naturalism. Cultivate a taste for the bizarre and the mystery by appealing to the imagination. The artists of this current illustrate a lost ideal, drawing inspiration from the past, mythologies, tales and legends.

© Musée des beaux-arts de Quimper.