This is one of our favorite depictions of St. Raphael. It was made in 1915 by Powell & Sons, also known as Whitefriars Glass, established in 1670. It is from our favorite series of the Archangels, including Gabriel and Michael. The style is Art Nouveau, a style we particularly love. Art Nouveau was a beautiful blending of high art and folk art, evolving from the idyllic, anti-academic Pre-Raphaelite style, a school of art that took its name from the painter, not the angel. The result here is a Raphael of lush, casual beauty, paused but powerful, with an alert nonchalance that comes from standing before the face of God.

The child next to him could be Tobiah, whom Raphael helped, although he's a little young than you'd expect in reading the Book of Tobit. So, this can be a representation of Raphael as a model for any Guardian Angel, and the child for any guarded soul.

Because of Raphael’s association with healing, he is thought to be the angel that stirs the pool of Bethesda.
(source: historicengland.org.uk)

Standard size. Easy to find a ready-made frame at your local hobby store. We recommend a wooden frame for this one, of course, either stained lightly or one of the colors in the painting that match your walls. I

– 8.5 x 11" acid-free paper
– Archival pigments, rated to last for generations.
– Cardboard backer
– Above story of the art
– Enclosed in a tight-fitting, crystal clear bag.

** IMPORTANT ** There is about an inch-and-a-third of white space around the picture, so the image is smaller than the paper.

Thanks for your interest!
Sue & John

“In order to communicate the message entrusted to her by Christ, the Church needs art.” ~ St. Pope John Paul II

Original image is out-of-copyright. Descriptive text and image alterations (hence the whole new image) © by Sue Kouma Johnson – Classic Catholic Art.