Under the gaze of Francis

2025, oil on canvas, 80 x 100cm

A painting created collaboratively between the artists Thais Nunes sugahara e Maria Alice Figueira Campos.

This project was created as an act of faith and for charitable purposes. The profits were donated to the organizations UPA-Lorena, Patas do Campinho, and Pata-EEL, dedicated to the rescue of stray animals in Lorena, São Paulo.

Under the gentle light filtering through the foliage of a yellow ipê tree, Saint Francis of Assisi turns his gaze—not towards the sky, but towards the earth. Resting in his arms is the golden lion tamarin, delicate and vibrant, like the very breath of the forest.

Upon his shoulders, the great kiskadee and the canary celebrate the joy of the moment, while at his feet the caramel-colored dog approaches, carrying with it the sweetness of those who ask for nothing more than a gesture of love. The golden halo, subtle as a thread of light at dawn, runs through the veins of the woodland, extending into the fur and feathers of the animals.

This same gold that touches both saint and creature shimmers like sunlight—echoing the sacred, luminous force of nature, and reminding us that what vibrates in light and warms the world is the very same energy that pulses in all that lives and feels. It forms a bridge between the sacred and the earthly, saints and creatures, heaven and earth. Here, the miracle is not revealed through supernatural feats. The true miracle lies in recognizing life itself as sacred, in turning our gaze toward the earth and toward the small creatures—extraordinary and vulnerable. The colors vibrate as though nature itself were breathing within the canvas. Each stroke celebrates innocence, vulnerability, and the presence of the divine in all beings.

This work is a call to tenderness and care, a reminder that when we extend our hand to an animal, we also touch the silent face of Christ present in creation. May Under the Gaze of Francis inspire the preservation of life and gently remind us, with truth and grace, that to love nature is also to love God.