Healing of the Blind Man

Description

Healing of the Blind Man

Carl Heinrich Bloch, 1871

In Bloch’s representation of this story, the blind Bartimaeus, who has been begging by the highway, falls to his knees and reaches out as Christ approaches. Emphasizing his blind condition, Bloch shows Bartimaeus begging in the shadow of the city walls; soon, he will stand and walk into the light. His tattered raiment and the beggar’s plate by his side attest to his dependence on the charity of others as they pass by. As Jesus approaches, He reaches out to touch the eyes of the blind man. The man on the left with a red turban looks on skeptically. One of the disciples restrains the two young children so that this miracle may take place without interruption or commotion.

The healing of the blind has become a metaphor for Christ’s mission to heal the spiritual blindness of mankind.

Healing of the Blind Man was displayed in our Sacred Gifts and The Master’s Hand exhibitions.

More About Bloch

Carl Bloch was an academic Danish painter who is best known for his paintings depicting the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.

He received his artistic training at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen. Later, while living in Rome for several years, Bloch studied paintings by the great Italian masters.

When he returned to Copenhagen, Bloch quickly established a reputation as a religious painter. This led to major commissions for paintings in churches and chapels of Denmark and Sweden.

His extensive body of work includes over 250 paintings and 78 etchings. Still, Bloch considered his religious works to be his most valuable contributions. His productive career ended early when he died of cancer at the age of only fifty-five.