The Virgin and Child with Saints Louis and Margaret

Artist: Dutch 16th Century Artist (Dutch, not listed)

Original Dimensions: 48 1/8" x 41 5/8"

Location: National Gallery of Art, London

About Artwork: (About 1510) "The identity of the artist behind this impressive panel is a mystery. In fact, whether the painter was Netherlandish or French is up for debate. The panel’s overall eccentricity and the dramatically foreshortened faces of the saints and angels are reminiscent of the early work of Jan Gossaert. Enthroned in the middle of an open-air chapel, the Virgin and Child are flanked by two music-making angels, the holy king of France Saint Louis, and Saint Margaret. Sumptuously dressed, she rises unharmed from the broken shell of the slobbering dragon that swallowed her. The painting is full of wildly inventive details. Some are sombre, such as the bare wooden steps that foretell Christ’s sacrifice on the Cross. Others are unusual, such as the mouth harp played by the angel to the left, a sound hardly associated with celestial harmony. Others are even humorous, such as the unruly child showing us his behind on the top right pilaster. Datable to about 1510, the painting certainly served as an altarpiece, perhaps for the urban priory of Drongen (Tronchiennes) in Ghent, where it was first documented in 1602." - (National Gallery of Art, London)