Collection

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

James Tissot

Brooklyn Museum photograph

Object Label

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.

Caption

James Tissot (Nantes, France, 1836–1902, Chenecey–Buillon, France). 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) Frame: 20 x 15 x 1 1/2 in. (50.8 x 38.1 x 3.8 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Purchased by public subscription, 00.159.137. (Photo: Brooklyn Museum)

Gallery

Not on view

Title

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

Date

1886–1894

Geography

Place made: France

Medium

Opaque watercolor over graphite on gray wove paper

Classification

Watercolor

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) Frame: 20 x 15 x 1 1/2 in. (50.8 x 38.1 x 3.8 cm)

Signatures

Signed bottom right: "J.J. Tissot"

Credit Line

Purchased by public subscription

Accession Number

00.159.137

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Artists and makers

James Tissot

524 works in the collection