Icon depicting the martyrdom of Saint Paraskevi

Michael Damaskenos is a towering figure among the Cretan painters of the 16th century. Renowned for his ease with the Renaissance style of painting, he influenced both his contemporaries and later artists. Here, kneeling in the centre of the icon, Saint Paraskevi is preparing for the executioner to strike his blow. The composition is awash with dramatic movement. Damaskenos seems to have faithfully followed the models of Venetian Mannerism, which probably arrived in Crete in the form of engravings, although his having come into contact with similar works during his periods of residence in Venice cannot be ruled out. The soldiers’ armour, helmets and attire are Italian, while two columns with smooth shafts hint at the antiquarian interests of the Renaissance period. The golden sky, the only element of the Byzantine style, is filled with Renaissance angels and putti. At the bottom of the icon, the bourgeois commissioner is depicted kneeling before the martyr in a posture of supplication. The signature of the painter can still be made out beside him: “ΠΟΙΗΜΑ ΜΙΧΑΗΛ ΔΑΜΑΣΚΗΝΟΥ” [a creation of Michael Damaskenos] It has been said that Damaskenos’ “more Venetian” work tends to transcend the limits of the icon and enter the category of the painting.

PUBLICATION
Skampavias K. 2007. Catalogue no. 162, in Skampavias K.—Chatzidakis N. (eds), Paul and Alexandra Canellopoulos Museum.Byzantine and Post-Byzantine Art, Athens, 280–285.