Artwork
Exorcism of Joanna of Castile
Exorcism of Joanna of Castile is an oil painting by Willem Geets. It dates from 1888 and is held in the collection of the Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp.
About this work
Overview
Willem Geets’ oil painting Exorcism of Joanna of Castile, completed in 1888, is part of the collection of the Royal Museum of Fine Arts in Antwerp.
Willem Geets’ oil painting Exorcism of Joanna of Castile, completed in 1888, is part of the collection of the Royal Museum of Fine Arts in Antwerp. The work portrays a solemn ritual inside a church, centering on a priest in white and gold vestments confronting a woman in black attire. The composition is framed by architectural details such as a stone fireplace, a shuttered window, and richly patterned rugs on the floor.
Subject & Meaning
The scene suggests a religious rite of expulsion, likely an exorcism, as the priest points toward the seated woman, who appears bowed and contemplative. Her dark clothing and the surrounding figures in white and brown robes create a contrast that emphasizes the tension between sanctity and disturbance. The gathering of onlookers, some clasping their hands in prayer, underscores the communal gravity of the moment.
Technique & Style
Geets employs a realistic handling of oil paint, rendering textures—from the gleam of the priest’s gold trim to the rough stone of the fireplace—with careful brushwork. The palette balances muted earth tones with brighter accents in the rugs, guiding the eye toward the central interaction. Light enters through the window, illuminating the figures and enhancing the work’s solemn atmosphere.
History & Provenance
Created in the late nineteenth century, the painting entered the Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp’s holdings, where it remains on display. Its acquisition reflects the museum’s interest in documenting religious genre scenes from the period, and it provides insight into Geets’ oeuvre during a time when historical and devotional subjects were popular among Belgian artists.
Context
The work references the historical figure Joanna of Castile, known for her alleged mental instability and confinement, though the painting does not depict a specific documented event. By invoking her name, Geets taps into contemporary fascination with madness, piety, and the power of the Church to intervene in personal crises, themes common in European art of the 1880s.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
Las postrimerías de Fernando III el Santo
Election of Boniface of Montferrat as leader of the Fourth Crusade.
Bishop Stanisław Szczepanowski Putting a Curse on King Bolesław Śmiały
Nikita Pustosvyat. Debate about faith
Philip II of Spain Honours Don John of Austria
The Settlement
Tu felix Austria nube
Doña Isabel la Católica en la cartuja de Miraflores
Offering to the fatherland by the Widow of Jacob van Artevelde
Vittore Pisani receives Holy Communion before taking command of an expedition against the Genoese
Pope Paul III in front of the Portrait of Luther
The madness of Joanna of Castile