Peter Paul RubensFlemish, 1577–1640Madonna and Child
Can I see it?
Unknown
Where is “Madonna and Child” now? Collection: Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, D.C. Unknown.
Washington, D.C., United States
The owner is known; whether it is on view today is not.
- In this state since
- Source
- The museum
About the painting
This image of the Virgin Mary and Jesus is a version of one that appears in a Rubens triptych commissioned around 1617 for the Antwerp Cathedral. In this tender scene, Mary gently touches the child’s foot with her right hand and balances him with her left hand, as if helping him to take his first step. The focus is more on Christ’s humanity than his divinity. The painting entered the National Collection of Fine Arts (now the Smithsonian American Art Museum) from the collection of John Gellatly, a prominent collector of American and European art. Gellatly felt that American artists were the equal of any “old master,” and his many European works were meant to be an example and an encouragement to this country’s painters.
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Details
- Accession number
- 1929.6.91
What it shows
In the catalog
Sources
- Smithsonian American Art Museum
- Image: Smithsonian American Art Museum — CC0
In the life of Peter Paul Rubens
The whole life5 June 1614
Son born: Albert Rubens
23 March 1618
Son born: Nicolaas Rubens, Lord of Rameyen
1619–1620
Privileges for Engravings (Copyright)
Rubens obtained "privileges" — an early analogue of copyright — for the reproduction of his engravings: in France for 10 years on 3 July 1619, in Holland for 7 years on 24 February 1620, and also in the territory of the Spanish Netherlands.
