Virgin and Child
Jan Gossart·c. 1520
Historical Context
Jan Gossaert's Virgin and Child, painted around 1520, represents the Netherlandish master's mature synthesis of Italian Renaissance idealism with Northern realism. Gossaert's Madonnas are notable for their monumental, sculptural quality — influenced by his study of classical and Renaissance sculpture during his Roman visit of 1508-09. This painting demonstrates his ability to give devotional subjects a new physical grandeur while maintaining the intimacy of the Netherlandish tradition.
Technical Analysis
Gossaert's oil-on-panel technique achieves a polished, smooth surface that enhances the sculptural quality of the figures. The Virgin and Child are modeled with the rounded, three-dimensional forms inspired by Italian sculpture, while the surfaces — skin, drapery, hair — are rendered with Netherlandish precision.
Provenance
Etienne-Edmond Martin, 2nd Baron de Beurnonville, Paris; sold Paris, May 9-16, 1881, no. 289, ill., for 4,000 francs to Baer [annotated sale cat. in Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris]. Dr. Max Wassermann (died 1932), Paris, by 1906 [lent by him to Tourcoing 1906]; by descent to his widow; confiscated by the Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg (E.R.R.) from the Banque de l’Union Parisienne where it had been placed on deposit [Consolidated Interrogation Report no. 2, 1945, p. 27 and May 26, 2000 report of Louis Amigues in curatorial file]; transferred to the collection of Hermann Goering and recovered by the Allies in Berchtesgaden, then sent to the Central Collecting Point, Munich on Aug. 1, 1945 (Munich property card no. 6168) and returned to France on Sep. 19, 1946; returned to Mme Pierre Lemand (née Wassermann), Nov. 29, 1946 [Louis Amigues report and May 19, 2000 letter from Françoise Cachin to James Wood]; sold by the heirs of Max Wassermann to Wildenstein and Co, 1954 [Apr. 4, 2000 letter of Daniel Wildenstein and letter of Sep. 17, 1999 of Joseph Baillio, both in curatorial file]; Wildenstein and Co., Paris and New York, from 1954 to 1957; sold to the Art Institute, 1957.
