Exhibited: Charlottenborg 1900 no. 5. Bought by Kunstforeningen (The Danish Art Society) and was disposed of by lottery at Kunstforeningen 1901, here won by M.D. E. Schmiegelow.

The painting is mentioned twice in Elisabeth Fabritius’, “Anna og Michael Ancher. Breve og fotografier” (Anna and Michael Ancher. Letters and photos), 2018, vol 3.

In letter 1289, dated 25.9.1899, Michael Ancher writes to Carl Locher (in Danish): “Anna is painting something in the church”.

In letter 1362, dated 15.5.1900, Ane Hedvig Brøndum writes to her daughter Anna, who is staying in her apartment in Frederiksberg (in Danish): “Thank you kindly Anna for the two letters we have had the pleasure of receiving: It was a great joy for you that God has managed it so well. How fortunate you are to have sold your church painting. It really is wonderful: I remember well in the autumn that you immediately left the table to go up to the church to take advantage of the last hour of daylight, of which there is so little at this time of the year, and it was also cold. It was probably not easy for you to get the wives to come, especially the old ones, but you were persistent, therefore God has now made you happy.”

The Art Museums of Skagen own an almost identical, more sketchy painting of the same scene (Inv. No. 1073). This also signed A. Ancher and dated 1899 and was exhibited at Charlottenborg’s Autumn Exhibition 1930 no. 23; and Anna Ancher’s Memorial Exhibition, Charlottenborg 1935 no. 35.

Anna Ancher had grown up in a deeply religious family and in a small local community where faith and religion played an important role, and she painted several religious motifs. In the exhibition catalogue “ANNA (jeg) ANNA”, these motifs are described as follows: “Anna Ancher’s paintings of the religious revival in Skagen should be seen as an expression of the influence that the Inner Mission had on the lives of many Skagen residents, but also of the rapidly increasing interest that several European naturalists devoted to the subject in the 1880s […] they took their starting point from a concretely experienced world instead of creating an ideal world, as was otherwise the custom among artists who depicted biblical motifs.” (Mette Bøgh Jensen (ed.), “ANNA (jeg) ANNA”, the Art Museums of Skagen, 2009, pp. 130, 132).

Art historian Charlotte Linvald writes about the motif of Communion in Skagen Church: “Apart from the ecclesiastical activity in what is obviously a church with a baptismal font, there is no hint of religious symbols. Ancher uses the church as a frame for a motif that shows the individual in the community around faith – without imposing religious thought on the viewer and without opening up a psychological analysis of the individuals”, and she continues about Ancher’s religious motifs in general: “Anna Ancher does not show religion as an escape, a sermon, a command or a promise of a better life in the afterlife. Above all, she shows the church and religion as a community. A meeting place and a place of unity in everyday life. A tradition and a ritual which connects the family and the local community, provides security and ensures the common thread through life” (Charlotte Linvald, “Modernity’s inner mission” in “Anna Ancher”, The National Gallery of Denmark, 2020, pp. 130, 134).

With her light-filled, colourful pictures, Anna Ancher has been characterized as one of the first modern colorists in Denmark, and in this painting, her distinct sense of colour is expressed in the interaction between the dark clothing of the churchgoers and the delicate, soft purple and pink shades in the church interior and the light from the window in the background. In contrast to the version at The Art Museums of Skagen, the window plays a greater role in this painting, and Anna Ancher’s characteristic play with incident light can be seen in the fleeting rays of the sun on the wall.