Van Dyck, Anthony (1599-1641)
Virgin and Child with Saint Catherine of Alexandria
c.1630
Oil on canvas, 109.2 x 90.8 cm
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
The infant Jesus responds with playful enthusiasm to an adoring Saint Catherine, a princess identified by pearls and a martyr’s palm. She was esteemed as an intercessor for young women because of the “mystical marriage” that bound her to Christ. The picture’s warm humanity and elegantly rhythmic composition reflect Van Dyck’s great admiration for Titian, Veronese, and other North Italian artists during his years in Italy (1621–27). (MET)