Artwork

Madonna and Child with Angels

Madonna and Child with Angels, by Quinten Metsys, oil, 1509
Madonna and Child with Angels, by Quinten Metsys, oil, 1509

Madonna and Child with Angels is an oil painting by the Northern Renaissance artist Quinten Metsys. It dates from 1509 and is held in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon. This oil-on-panel triptych, created around 1509, is a devotional painting by Quentin Matsys.

About this work

Overview

This oil-on-panel triptych, created around 1509, is a devotional painting by Quentin Matsys. It is now housed in the Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon, which acquired it in 1859.

Subject & Meaning

The painting depicts the Madonna and Christ Child surrounded by two angels, one playing a lute and the other holding a rose, within an ornate architectural setting. The scene conveys a sense of serenity and devotion.

Technique & Style

Matsys's use of oil paint achieves a sense of depth and luminosity, with detailed renderings of the subjects' faces and clothing. The work shows the influence of earlier Netherlandish art, particularly that of Jan van Eyck.

Artist & collection

Portrait of Quinten Metsys

Artist

Quinten Metsys

Quentin Matsys (UK: MAT-sysse, US: MAHT-sysse; also Massys or Metsys; Flemish: Quinten Matsijs ; 1466–1530) was a Flemish painter in the Early Netherlandish tradition.