187

Julius Thiengen Bloch

(1888-1966)

I Will Lift Up Mine Eyes to the Hills.

Oil on canvas, 1958.
Signed lower right.
72 x 40 in. (182.9 x 101.6 cm.)
Frame: 79 x 48 in. (200.7 x 121.9 cm.)

  • Provenance:
    Private collection, Pennsylvania.
  • Notes:
    I Will Lift Up Mine Eyes to the Hills references Psalms 121, when David looked for help, and trusted that it would come from God. This message likely resonated with Julius T. Bloch, a Jewish artist whose works often depicted Philadelphia's working class, especially the city's African Americans. He created a lithograph of the subject, as well as at least two paintings during the 1950's, when his work became inspired by Byzantine art. One painting, a 24x20 inch portrait of the subject's upward gaze, was in the collection of Benjamin D. Bernstein, a businessman and art collector in Philadelphia who had become Bloch's friend and greatest patron. In 1958, Bernstein connected Bloch with Marjorie Penney, the Director of Fellowship House, a non-profit center of education, outreach, faith, and social services for Philadelphians of all ages and races. With integrated gatherings, it promoted progress towards federal anti-lynching measures, anti-Semitism, and other social concerns. Due to their limited finding, Bloch's painting for Fellowship House, another version of I Will Lift Up Mine Eyes to the Hills, was likely a gift from Bloch or funded by Bernstein. In a May 26, 1958 letter thanking Bloch, Penney wrote, "Your magnificent canvas, 'I will lift up mine eyes', has been hung in our hall and means more to us than I can possibly explain. Thousands of Philadelphians, plus visitors from all over the world, will share our pleasure in the painting." The same "magnificent canvas" was lent by Fellowship House and exhibited at Bloch's Memorial Exhibition at the Philadelphia Art Alliance in February and March 1967 (number 33). Fellowship House moved its headquarters from Philadelphia to Fellowship Farm, five miles from Pottstown, Pennsylvania in 1973 and continued its mission before its closure in 2016. 
  • Condition:
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March 12, 2026 12:00 PM EDT
New York, NY, US

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