Philadelphia–based artist Jesse Mockrin (born 1981) studies the past to make art for the present. Drawing upon Old Master works, specifically from the 17th century, Mockrin's dynamic and active large-scale oil paintings focus on moments of tension and intensity in their baroque compositions. This publication features a series of new paintings by Mockrin based on works in the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) collection, including Luca Giordano's Bathsheba Bathing (c. 1660), Nicolas Tournier's Judgment of Solomon (c. 1620) and Georges de la Tour's Saint Anne with the Infant Jesus (c. 1640). This synthesis is not merely a demonstration of the importance of historical art; rather, it is a statement about how these pieces remain relevant and acquire new meanings in our present day. Mockrin's first museum publication, the catalog features an interview with the artist in conversation with Adam Harris Levine, Associate Curator, European Art at the AGO.
