Jean Baptiste Wicar - Portrait Of Pope Pius VII - Oil On Panel

Oil on panel in portrait orientation.
46 x 32.3 cm.

Pope Pius VII is depicted in a three-quarter view, seated on the papal throne, against a draped background. Next to the subject is his desk, and in the background, a statue of the Virgin and Child with the young Saint John the Baptist.

The Pope would be portrayed on several occasions by the famous painter from Lille who had settled in Rome.
Upon his election in 1800, Pius VII had to confront the upheavals within the Church caused by the French Revolution and the rise of Napoleon Bonaparte. In 1801, he ratified the Concordat aimed at normalizing relations between France and the Holy See. Jean-Baptiste Wicar immortalized this event in a painting now on display at the Vatican Museum.

In 1804, the pope presided over the emperor’s coronation.
His pontificate, until his death in 1823, was marked by the restoration of religious authority within the post-Napoleonic political order.

Jean-Baptiste Wicar settled permanently in Rome, and during these uncertain times, he built one of the greatest art collections of his era.
Upon his death, he bequeathed his entire estate to the city of Lille, the city that had awarded him a scholarship when he was only 18 years old.
From this bequest, the Wicar Foundation was born, and it remains active to this day.