Apotheosis of Saint Sebastian

Sebastiano Ricci's Apotheosis of Saint Sebastian of 1725 depicts the martyred soldier saint ascending to heaven surrounded by angels — a composition designed for ceiling or altarpiece installation that demonstrates Ricci's mastery of the illusionistic foreshortening required for di sotto in su (viewed from below) decorative painting. Ricci's religious compositions for Venetian churches and northern European palaces combined the Baroque energy of his Veronese inheritance with the more intimate scale of gallery paintings, adapting Italian grand manner painting to the requirements of Northern European patrons.

Ricci renders the saint's heavenly ascent with luminous color and dynamic upward movement. The light palette and the graceful arrangement of angels and clouds demonstrate the decorative mastery that influenced the next generation of Venetian painters.