Judas turns his head as he goes.
Bible in art · John
Judas Leaves the Cenacle (Judas quitte le Cénacle)
James Tissot · 1886–1894
Brooklyn Museum, New York
Judas slips out of the dark room through a heavy wooden door, wrapped in a brown cloak. He looks back over his shoulder as he steps over the threshold, one hand on the door.
Outside, the night is grey-blue and cold. Tissot painted almost the whole sheet in deep brown shadow, with only the edge of the door and the street beyond catching a pale light.
From the text
- “What you are about to do, do quickly” (John 13:27)
- “Judas went out into the night” (John 13:30)
The artist’s own
- Judas looking back as he leaves
- The pale night street through the doorway
Details
Looking back
His hand
He holds the edge of the door.
The night
A cold blue light outside the door.
The threshold
His bare foot steps out over the sill.
James Tissot, French, 1836–1902. Brooklyn Museum, New York (Purchased by public subscription, 00.159.224) · Opaque watercolor over graphite on gray wove paper · Brooklyn Museum (Commons file page, «Permission»): "This image was uploaded by the Brooklyn Museum as a content partnership, and is considered to have no known copyright restrictions by the institutions of the Brooklyn Museum." — "No known copyright restrictions".