Bible Artists

Gustave Moreau

1826–1898

French

Gustave Moreau (1826–1898) was a French painter whose mysterious images helped prepare the way for the Symbolist movement. Rather than attempting to reconstruct biblical events realistically, Moreau transformed them into elaborate visions filled with symbolism. Biblical subjects appear alongside stories drawn from classical mythology and literature throug...

Bartolomé Esteban Murillo

1617–1682

Spanish

Bartolomé Esteban Murillo (1617–1682) was one of the leading painters of the Spanish Baroque and the dominant painter in Seville during the later seventeenth century. Religious subjects formed a major part of his career, but his approach often differed from the severe intensity associated with some of his Spanish contemporaries. Murillo frequently emphasi...

Jim Padgett

1931

American

Jim Padgett (born 1931) is an American illustrator best known for the extensive biblical artwork created for the Read-n-Grow Picture Bible, published by Sweet Publishing in 1984. Rather than concentrating on a small number of famous biblical scenes, Padgett illustrated stories throughout much of the Old and New Testaments. Many narratives were presented a...

Pietro Perugino

c. 1450–1523

Italian

Pietro Perugino was a Renaissance artist whose religious work forms part of the history of Christian painting. Perugino developed his reputation in Florence and Umbria, where the demand for altarpieces and large devotional paintings gave him opportunities to refine a distinctive visual language. He operated successful workshops and accepted commissions fr...

Piero della Francesca

c. 1415-1420–1492

Italian

Piero joined serene sacred imagery with careful geometry and convincing space.

Pinturicchio

c. 1454–1513

Italian

Pinturicchio was a Renaissance artist whose religious work forms part of the history of Christian painting. Pinturicchio, born Bernardino di Betto, came from Perugia and developed a successful career in central Italy. He worked in environments shaped by Perugino and became known for elaborate fresco cycles, ornamental detail, and vivid narrative scenes. H...

Sebastiano del Piombo

1485–1547

Italian

Sebastiano del Piombo was a Venetian-born Renaissance painter who combined rich Venetian color with the monumental figure style associated with Michelangelo.

Vasily Polenov

1844–1927

Russian

Vasily Polenov (1844–1927) was a Russian painter celebrated for landscapes and carefully researched scenes from the life of Jesus. His biblical paintings place Christ within the architecture, terrain, and daily life of the ancient Near East.

Nicolas Poussin

1594–1665

French

Nicolas Poussin (1594–1665) was a French painter who spent most of his mature career in Rome and became one of the leading figures of seventeenth-century classical painting. Biblical history formed an important part of his work alongside subjects drawn from ancient mythology and history. Poussin approached Scripture as a narrative painter. Carefully arran...

Raphael

1483–1520

Italian

Raphael (1483–1520) was an Italian painter, draftsman, and architect who became one of the defining masters of the High Renaissance. Although his life was brief, biblical and Christian subjects occupied a central place in his work. Raphael became especially admired for images of the Virgin and Child, but his religious art extended much further. He painted...

Rembrandt

1606–1669

Dutch

Rembrandt van Rijn (1606–1669) was a Dutch painter, draftsman, and printmaker whose biblical subjects form a major part of his work. He returned to Scripture throughout his career and depicted events from both the Old and New Testaments. Rather than concentrating only on spectacle, Rembrandt often focused on the people within the biblical narratives. Gest...

Guido Reni

1575–1642

Italian

Guido Reni (1575-1642) was a leading Italian painter of the Bolognese school. Celebrated for his graceful figures and serene religious imagery, he combined classical idealism with careful observation of the human form.