6. Andachtsbilder

The sixth film in a series about Christianity’s central figure: Jesus Christ.

It focuses on a type of religious image known by its German name, an ‘Andachtsbild’ (plural Andachtsbilder). These types of art works show holy figures extracted from a narrative context to form a highly focused, and often very emotionally powerful, object of devotion. 

Presented by VCS Director Professor Ben Quash and Deputy Director Dr Jennifer Sliwka.

Artworks: Man of Sorrows (Christ on the cold stone), 1525, limewood inv. 8347 (cat. p. 49); Juan de Valmeseda, Lamentation, c.1525, walnut, inv. 2648 (p.180); Giovanni Bellini, The Dead Christ Supported by Two Angels, c.1470–75, Poplar wood, 82.9 x 66.9 cm, Kat. Nr. 28.

Part of the Series Unlocking Christian Art. Produced in partnership with the National Museums in Berlin, these short films tell the story of Jesus with the help of the treasures of the Bode-Museum and the Gemäldegalerie, both sculpture and painting. These films are designed to equip users to understand, read, and enjoy some of Europe’s greatest works of Christian art, as well as the texts that inspired them, and to encourage fresh interpretation and insight in today’s audiences.