Blessed Villana de’ Botti was born in Florence in the early 14th century. Desiring in her youth to enter a convent, she later married and fell into idle and worldly habits. Once, while dressing herself finely in preparation for an entertainment, she saw in her mirror the image of a demon, representing her state of sinfulness.
This inspired her to make confession, enter the Third Order of St. Dominic, and, while yet remaining married, devote the rest of her life to acts of piety and charity. She was gifted with visions, ecstasies and prophecies, and was venerated as a saint from the day of her death.
Here, I illustrated the moment of Villana’s conversion; she wears an extravagant headdress and a sleeveless surcoat and gown decorated in a millefleur pattern, and jewelry. Her room is decorated with Gothic tracery, floor tiles with a spiral pattern and a tapestry. The demon in the mirror is composed of various absurdly arranged human, plant and animal forms.
In the border, three other mirrors show Jesus Christ, the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Dominic, whose virtues Villana reflected through the end of her life. The rest of the border is filled with ornament based on medieval manuscripts and tapestries, and included the arms of the Order of Preachers. The inscription is from the Epistle of St. James, which in its context describes Blessed Villana:
For if a man be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he shall be compared to a man beholding his own countenance in a glass. For he beheld himself, and went his way, and presently forgot what manner of man he was. But he that hath looked into the perfect law of liberty, and hath continued therein, not becoming a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work; this man shall be blessed in his deed.
I used the translucent calfskin for artistic effect, drawing the damask patterns and the reflected images on the opposite side of the sheet, in reverse. Like watermarks, these are more visible when the drawing is held up to a light. The original drawing thus has a different character depending on where and when it is seen.
Medium: Drawing, color ink on calfskin vellum
Dimensions: 5 1/2" × 7 3/4"
Year: 2017
The original drawing was made on private commission.
Open-edition giclée prints of this drawing are available. You may use the buttons below to pay via PayPal, debit card, or credit card. Be sure to confirm the shipping address.
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Actual size art print: $40
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11" × 15" large print: $80
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200dpi digital download: $8
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See this page for additional ordering instructions and general information. If you want to pay via a check or money order, please e-mail me at danielmitsui@danielmitsui.com.
