Collections: European Art: Jesus Goes Up Alone onto a Mountain to Pray (Jésus monte seul sur une montagne pour prier)

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Jesus Goes Up Alone onto a Mountain to Pray (Jésus monte seul sur une montagne pour prier)

• Portfolio/Series: The Life of Our Lord Jesus Christ (La Vie de Notre-Seigneur Jésus-Christ)

Seeking solitude for prayer following the miracle of the loaves and fishes, Jesus retreats to the peak of a mountain. Tissot’s commentary observes that such solitary moments precede many significant episodes in Jesus’ ministry, including the Ordaining of the Apostles, the Sermon of the Beatitudes, and the Transfiguration, noting Jesus’ preference for “lofty spots,” elevations near to God, for these meditative respites.

In this dramatic image, Tissot sets Jesus against a night sky, his brilliant white robes backlit by the glow of the stars and the crescent moon.


• Artist: James Tissot, French, 1836-1902
• Medium: Opaque watercolor over graphite on gray wove paper
• Place Made: France
• Dates: 1886-1894
• Dimensions: Image: 11 3/8 x 6 1/4 in. (28.9 x 15.9 cm) Sheet: 11 3/8 x 6 1/4 in. (28.9 x 15.9 cm)
• Signature: Signed bottom right: "J.J. Tissot"
• Collections: European Art
• Museum Location: This item is on view in Robert E. Blum Gallery, 1st Floor
• Accession Number: 00.159.137
• Credit Line: Purchased by public subscription
• Image: Overall, 00.159.137_PS1.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2006
James Tissot (French, 1836-1902). Jesus Goes Up Alone onto a Mountain to Pray (Jésus monte seul sur une montagne pour prier), 1886-1894. Opaque watercolor over graphite on gray wove paper, Image: 11 3/8 x 6 1/4 in. (28.9 x 15.9 cm) Sheet: 11 3/8 x 6 1/4 in. (28.9 x 15.9 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Purchased by public subscription, 00.159.137 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 00.159.137_PS1.jpg)