Taught online via Zoom
Tuesdays, July 11 - August 15
6 – 8 pm ET
$150 Patreon Members / $170 General Admission

Please note: All classes will be recorded for those unable to attend

This course will provide an introduction to the theology and practice of saint veneration in the Catholic tradition through a survey of great paintings, prints, and sculptures. Students will be invited to find their own patron saints among the many we’ll study!

A vividly illustrated chronological catalog of saints, both well-known and obscure, will entertain and enlighten. We’ll begin with the myriad Early Christian martyrs, whose attributes often include the implements of their torture. We’ll meet the fascinating Medieval and Renaissance saints, literally in some cases, as we study the relics of St. Clare of Assisi and St. Catherine of Siena, among others. Witness the melodramatic agonies of Baroque saints, who emerge from murky darkness as they roll their eyes heavenward.

We’ll also take a look at how sainthood and the canonization process have changed as we consider the political implications of venerating modern saints like St. Gianna, and candidates for sainthood like teenage computer programmer Carlo Acutis.

The concept of ‘patron saints’ is based upon individual relationships that the faithful build with saints that share their name, or are associated with places, stories or attributes that are meaningful to them. By the end of this course, you will be able to identify saints by their attributes, and be well versed in the textual sources for saints’ lives, especially the Golden Legend by Jacobus de Voragine, the second most popular book of the Late Medieval period; the only book read more often was the Bible itself.

Through saints’ stories, we can build an understanding of how the legends and images of these holy figures developed in dialogue with the history and culture of their times and places. Feel free to share with us your hometown churches and their featured saints in stained glass, paint, plaster, or stone!

Each of the 6 weekly meetings will contain a vividly illustrated lecture on saints of a particular period, with special emphasis on the textual sources for their lives (or lack thereof), as well as how they have been depicted in paintings, prints, sculptures, and photographs. The lecture will be accompanied by suggested readings, homework prompts, and class discussions. The final project will invite you to choose two patron saints for yourself, and introduce us to their textual and/or visual traditions.

Topics covered will include:

• Early Christian Martyrs of the 1^st through 4^th centuries

• Early Medieval Saints: 5^th – 8^th centuries

• Saints of the Carolingian, Ottonian, and Romanesque Eras (800 – 1200)

• Saints of the Gothic and Early Renaissance Eras (1200-1500)

• Saints of the High Renaissance, Baroque, and 18^th Century (1500-1800)

• Saints of the 19^th, 20^th and 21^st centuries

Brenda Edgar is an Art Historian in Louisville, KY. Her research interests include relics and reliquaries, medieval medical manuscripts and depictions of disease in medieval art, as well as the historical role of altered states of consciousness in the creation of art.

She is also a poet whose work has most recently appeared in the literary journals Better Than Starbucks and Rust + Moth; her poetry will also be featured in 2022 issues of The Blue Mountain Review, The Main Street Rag, and Crosswinds.

When she isn’t reading or writing, Brenda is a New York Times Crossword Puzzle addict and an avid yogi.

Her free monthly public talk series, “Art History Illustrated,” is presented at the Carnegie Center for Art and History in New Albany, Indiana.

Images: St Agatha, oil painting by an Italian (?) painter, 18th (?), Wellcome Collection; Anonymous master, reliquary of the jaw of St. Anthony, Basilica di Santo Antonio, Padua, 1349