The Church of St. Valentine in Maia, and the Puellachers (Conclusion)

Appendix.

History and Art.

The Church of St. Valentine in Maia, and the Puellachers. 4/4

(Conclusion.)

More favorable prospects opened up for him after the return of the longed-for peace. He was in great demand in Innsbruck for numerous commissions and, in 1815, was appointed Imperial-Royal Court and Theater Painter. Weary of city noise, however, he retreated to the countryside again in 1821, purchased property in his native village, and established his permanent residence there.

While still based in Innsbruck, he painted the Church of St. Peter in Ellbögen; in 1821 at Hatting, belonging to the parish of Flaurling; in 1822 the entirely new large church with the altarpieces in Leutasch, a curacy of the parish of Telfs; in 1823 the church in Sellrain, a local chaplaincy in the parish of Axams; in 1824 the curacy church in Langesthei in the Paznaun Valley, and the curacy church in Volders, of the parish of Kolsass, and so forth. All these works he executed boldly and quickly, without extensive preliminary study, as demanded by the low remuneration.

At St. Valentine in Mais, he was intent on doing himself credit and demonstrating how far he had advanced in his art compared to his father. For the ceiling—42 feet long, 16 feet wide across the flat surface, and 18½ feet in the curves—and for a semicircular field above the frontal arch at the entrance to the presbytery, 22 feet wide and 12 feet high, he had drafted very successful sketches at home during the winter. In the main ceiling fresco, St. Valentine kneels in glory before the three Divine Persons and the Blessed Virgin standing opposite slightly below, interceding for the various sick and suppliants depicted in the foreground below. In the far distance of the background, the little church can be seen, with a few cattle grazing in the mountains above it. A genius descending from on high pours out the horn of plenty over the broad valley. The concept expressing general trust in this saint, as well as the antiquity of his veneration shown in the diverse costumes of the figures, is beautifully executed. Several figures, especially a man lying in the most violent seizure of epilepsy and a seated cripple with a crutch turned away from view, truly seem worthy of the masterly hand of a Schöpf or Knoller in the accuracy of drawing, the vibrancy of colors, and the delicacy of the brushwork. The subject of the field above the frontal arch is described by the inscription below it: VALENTIN, DER ALTE RHAETIER-APOSTEL, AVS PASSAV VERTRIEBEN, PREDIGTE SEGENREICH IN DEN ALPEN. Below the three small wall paintings, 4 feet high and 3 feet wide, one reads: a. Venantius Fortunatus makes a pilgrimage to the tomb of St. Valentine. b. Corbinian is buried alongside Valentine. c. Aribo saved through the intercession of Saints Valentine and Corbinian. – Puellacher began this entire work after the middle of April and completed it in mid-July. He intends to spend the remainder of the summer decorating the newly built little church at Telfes beyond the Jaufen, in the parish of Sterzing.

Of his larger oil paintings, he believes any connoisseur may view with approval the St. Sebastian in Silz, the Baptism of Christ in Pfitsch, and the St. Mary Magdalene in Leutasch.

In short: Puellacher demonstrated what he could achieve if he were not forced to rush to provide for his and his family's needs. At the same time, he deserves the honor, merit, and gratitude for having adorned many a church in his homeland—which otherwise would have remained bare and cold—at a very modest and affordable price, in such a way that, even if much might still be left to be desired by a rigorous connoisseur, it always serves to edify and awaken religious devotion in the hearts of those who gather within.