Chalk Study for the fresco 'Christ in Majesty'

drawing height: 31 cm
drawing width: 25 cm

Label from 'Monumental Murals': Watts had little enthusiasm for formal religion, and Christian subjects are very rare in his art. He was however willing to make an exception if offered a commission to design a mural, fresco or mosaic for a church. Watts painted a large fresco showing Christ in Majesty with the four Evangelists for the Gothic Revival church of St James the Less in London, completed in 1861. The fresco soon deteriorated and in the 1880s was replaced by a mosaic version of the same design. This sensitive drawing relates to the fresco that Watts painted in St James the Less, London in 1861. The space available was over the chancel arch which separates the choir and altar from the main body of the church. This awkward shape presented a challenge for the artist. In the drawing, Watts has sought to achieve a single flowing group of figures. However, in the fresco as completed, the artist resorted to two distinct tiers of figures, one with Christ and angels and another with the Evangelists below. [Text by Beatrice Bertram]