SANTA MARTA DE BETANIA

Saint Martha. Oil on canvas.

This is one of the most special commissions I have had the honor and good fortune to undertake—one of those that lets you witness how art can be a transformative force and a channel between the Whole and the individual.

The work depicts Saint Martha of Bethany and has now been blessed by the Benedictine monks of the Monastery of El Paular in Rascafría, Madrid.
A blessing means “the dedication of a person or thing to the service of God.” It is a source of pride for me to see how a canvas, pigments, and the work of this humble painter can be transformed into a sacred object, a channel between the divine and the human.

This work connects this contemplative congregation, which follows the Rule of Saint Benedict, with the Brotherhood of Saint Martha of Seville.

The work is inspired by the image carried in procession on Holy Monday in Seville from the Church of San Andrés, created by the Spanish religious sculptor Sebastián Santos.

Saint Martha is mentioned several times in the New Testament: in Luke (Lk 10:38–42) and in the Gospel of John (Jn 11:1–40 and 12:1–8).
I needed to get to know this woman in order to portray her, so that she might appear and become present in the portrait. As I read what is written, I discovered a remarkable woman: hardworking, tireless, and caring.

Saint Martha teaches us to show mercy to others, for example by offering food, shelter, and affection to anyone in need.

She is the patron saint of cooks, servants, housewives, hospitality workers, hoteliers, guesthouses, laundresses, the Sisters of Charity, and the home.

In Luke 10:38–42, we see Martha working hard to welcome Jesus into her home. Her sister, Mary of Bethany, simply sits at his feet and listens to him. Both Mary and Martha serve, but Mary understands what matters most and the need to choose to be with Christ, while Martha complains to Jesus.

“As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked:

‘Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!’
‘Martha, Martha,’ the Lord answered, ‘you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.’”

She also appears in the Gospel of John as the sister of Lazarus at his resurrection, acknowledging Jesus as the Son of God.

The figure is dressed as a Hebrew woman and wears a fan-shaped brooch of gold leaf on her chest, reminiscent of a Seville fan. At its center is the silhouette of the saint, holding the holy-water bucket in her right hand and the aspergillum in her left. The keys hanging from her belt, in the colors of Seville, connect her to the work of hospitality.

The Gospel passages about Martha of Bethany are engraved on the fan’s fabric: Lk 10:38–42, Jn 11:1–40, and 12:1–8. In the background is the profile of the Monastery of Santa María del Paular and its reflection in the pool. The golden letter M is a nod to