St. Pafnuty 

Wilhelm Kotarbinski painted this image of St. Pafnuty at some point in the late 19th or early 20th century. Kotarbinski was a Polish artist who spent much of his career in Russia, where religious imagery like this was very popular. The painting uses conventional symbols like the halo, here in gold leaf, and the monk’s robes to signal the subject's holiness. But the way St. Pafnuty’s humanity comes through is interesting. You can see that in the wrinkles on his face and the slight messiness of his beard. The rosary he holds suggests a life of devotion and prayer. Kotarbinski may be inviting the viewer to identify with the monk, and to consider his own spiritual life. To better understand the image, we can research the traditions of the Orthodox Church, the history of monasticism in Russia, and the different ways that artists have portrayed saints over time. This gives us a clearer sense of the social and institutional context for the painting.