Stefano Trapanese - San Mattia apostolo (St. Matthias apostle)

Stefano Trapanese is a leading artist in the province of Salerno, Italy, and is consistently ranked in the top 10 of national profile masters in Italy (source: PitturiAmo.com).
An Italian art history scholar, particularly specializing in 17th-century Neapolitan painting, Maestro Stefano Trapanese draws inspiration from the great Caravaggio (Michelangelo Merisi) and Italian Baroque painters. His paintings are all original oil on canvas works. He chooses models, dresses them, and poses them for portraits.
The painting is part of a set of 12 original paintings depicting the saints apostles of Jesus Christ. They are offered for sale individually or in bulk, only upon specific request.
The open book on the passage from the Acts of the Apostles becomes an opportunity to recall the manner in which Matthias was added to the group of the elect: '[The Apostles] prayed saying: “You, Lord, who know the hearts of all, show us which of these two [Barsabbas and Matthias] you have chosen to take the place in this ministry and apostleship that Judas abandoned to go to the place he chose.”' They cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias' (Acts 1:24-26). It is divine decision that rules the lot in favor of Matthias, called to 'compensate' Judas's betrayal and thus restore balance to the group of the Twelve. The emotion for the privilege received is accompanied by firmness in accepting persecution and martyrdom, expressed through the motif of the hand closing around the spear, the instrument of his faith sacrifice.
The painting is equipped with a valuable hand-gilded wooden frame, which increases the dimensions of the artwork to 60 cm x 53 cm (19.6 in x 16.9 in), and a brass plaque bearing the artist's name and the title of the work.

A scholar of Italian art history, particularly 17th-century Neapolitan painting, Stefano Trapanese draws inspiration from the great Caravaggio (Michelangelo Merisi) and the painters of the Italian Baroque. His paintings are all original oil on canvas. He selects his models, dresses them, and poses them for a portrait.
This painting is one of 12 originals depicting the holy apostles of Jesus Christ. They are available for sale individually or as a set upon specific request.
The open book on the passage from the Acts of the Apostles becomes an occasion to recall the modality according to which Matthias was added to the group of the elect: '[The Apostles] prayed saying: 'You, Lord, who know the hearts of all, show us which of these two [Barsabbas and Matthias] you have designated to take the place in this ministry and apostleship that Judas left to go to his chosen place.' So they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias' (Acts 1:24-26). It is the divine decision that rules the fate in favor of Matthias, called to 'compensate' for the betrayal of Judas and thus restore balance to the group of the Twelve. The emotion for the privilege received is accompanied by the firmness in accepting persecution and martyrdom, rendered through the motif of the hand that tightens around the halberd, an instrument of his sacrifice of faith.
The painting comes with a precious hand-gilded wooden frame that increases the size of the painting to 60 cm x 53 cm (19.6 in x 16.9 in) and a brass plate bearing the author and title of the work.