Martha and Mary in Fra Angelico’s Agony in the Garden: medieval lights in the rereading of Biblical traditions and texts

Abstract

Presentation and interpretation of the artistic work “Agony in the Garden” of the Dominican friar Fra Angelico as a part of the interpretative history of the Biblical text Luke 10.38-42 and of the Biblical narratives that present Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane together with the disciples Peter, John and James.  The work’s historical context is that of Italy in the Late Middle Ages. In the painting, Martha and Mary appear inserted into the story of the Passion of Jesus, in the garden of Gethsemane, as a rereading that Fra Angelico contextualized in the history of his time. For the sake of analysis, we used reference points from feminist hermeneutics at the interface of the theological, cultural and art history. We aimed at demonstrating that Christian sacred art, as a part of the interpretative history, not only illustrates something from the past and/or present, but has also some influence on the form(at)ing of mentalities. This pedagogical function is present and interpreted positively in the Agony in the Garden, in dialogue with women’s movements in the context of this work of art. It can be noted that part of the women’s story is represented by means of the interpretative history, also present in the fresco in question. Hermeneutically, the text, the picture and the interpretative history continue challenging today’s sciences, skills and libertarian movements.