Young Woman with a Pink

This Young Woman with a Pink, around 1487 and at the Metropolitan Museum, is one of Memling's finest female portraits. The sitter holds a carnation (pink), which may symbolize betrothal, and the intimate half-length format suggests a private commission — possibly created for a fiancé or as a betrothal gift, a use of portraiture common in fifteenth-century Flemish practice. Hans Memling brought serene, refined beauty to Flemish devotional painting, becoming the leading artist in Bruges after the death of van der Weyden. The young woman's features rendered with Memling's characteristic delicacy and the carnation painted with botanical exactness while also serving as a symbol of love and fidelity create an image of refined feminine beauty that stands among the finest female portraits in the entire Flemish tradition.

The young woman's features are rendered with Memling's characteristic delicacy, her smooth skin and gentle expression conveying quiet beauty. The carnation is painted with botanical exactness while also serving as a symbol of love and fidelity.