Artwork
The Annunciate Virgin, Saint Andrew with a Donor and His Sons, Saint Catherine of Alexandria with a Donor and Her Daughters, and the Annunciate Angel
The Annunciate Virgin, Saint Andrew with a Donor and His Sons, Saint Catherine of Alexandria with a Donor and Her Daughters, and the Annunciate Angel is an oil painting by the Northern Renaissance artist Jan Provoost. It dates from 1514 and is held in the collection of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
About this work
Overview
Created in 1514 by Jan Provoost, a painter from the region of Mons, this oil work combines several religious subjects within a single composition. The piece is divided into four distinct panels, each framed in black with gold trim, and is now part of the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s collection.
Subject & Meaning
The central figures include the Annunciate Virgin and an attendant angel, while the flanking panels present Saint Andrew with a donor and his two sons, and Saint Catherine of Alexandria with a donor and her three daughters. The donors are shown in devotional posture, emphasizing personal piety alongside the saints.
Technique & Style
Executed in oil on panel, the work reflects the Northern Renaissance’s attention to detail and subdued palette. Dark, atmospheric backgrounds reveal distant trees and architecture, while the figures are rendered in richly colored robes that contrast with the deep shadows, creating a contemplative ambience.
History & Provenance
The painting was completed in the early sixteenth century and has remained in private and institutional hands before entering the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Its provenance traces back to the artist’s workshop in the Low Countries, where Provoost was active during the transition from late Gothic to Renaissance styles.
Context
Provoost’s composition aligns with the devotional practices of the period, where patrons commissioned multi‑panel works that integrated personal representation with revered saints. The inclusion of both male and female donors alongside their children reflects contemporary ideas about family devotion and intercessory prayer.
Artist & collection
Artist
Jan Provoost, or Jean Provost, or Jan Provost (1462/65 – January 1529) was a painter born in Mons.
Virgin and Child
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Adoration of the Magi
Virgin and Child Enthroned, with Saints Jerome and John the Baptist and a Carthusian Monk
The Virgin Mary in Glory
The Virgin and Child
Madonna with the Child
Last Judgement
Hieronymus altarpiece
Triptychon des Pieter van de Woestyne
Drei Täfelchen aus dem Zyklus zum Leben Marias
Triptych: Rest on the Flight into Egypt
Triptych of the Virgin with the Child and Angels, St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist![Altarpiece showing scenes from the Infancy of Christ: The Adoration of the Magi [center]; The Annunciation; The Presentation of Christ in the Temple; The Flight into Egypt; The Nativity [clockwise from upper left], by Master of Hoogstraeten](https://artifactworldgallery.com/img/master-of-hoogstraeten--altarpiece-showing-scenes-from-the-infancy-of-christ-the-ado--6a236bfea3373486-w320.webp)
Altarpiece showing scenes from the Infancy of Christ: The Adoration of the Magi [center]; The Annunciation; The Presentation of Christ in the Temple; The Flight into Egypt; The Nativity [clockwise from upper left]
The Crucifixion with Saints and a Donor
Triptych of Calvary
Birth of Mary and the Meeting of Anna and Joachim at the Golden Gate
Saint Anne with the Virgin and Child and four saints (John the Baptist, Louis IX, Catherine and Barbara)
Ss Cecilia,Mary Magdalene with donatrix,lamentation flanked by other six Sorrows of Mary, Ss James Great,Martin of Tours an Augustine monk
Madonna with the Saints Catherine and Barbara