Vatican Museums

In the years around 1910, the year from which The miraculous catch of fish probably dates, Ensor went through a difficult psychological crisis aggravated by sight problems that, until 1933, led him to suspend the more demanding work of engraving, favouring instead lithography and drawing with coloured pencils on paper. Between 1910 and 1916 the artist produced a series of twenty-six drawings dedicated to the theme of the Life of Christ, thus continuing to devote himself to religious subjects, which had particularly interested him ever since the period of his studies. In this drawing he depicts one of the best-known of Jesus’ miracles in a composition with a balanced and harmonious atmosphere, which Ensor also echoes in his choice of muted tones.