The artwork titled “Virgin and Child With St. Anne and a Franciscan Donor,” created by Hugo van der Goes circa 1475, is an exemplary piece from the Northern Renaissance art movement. Executed in oil on wood, the painting measures 32.8 by 38.8 centimeters and is housed at the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium in Brussels. The artwork belongs to the religious painting genre, focusing on sacred Christian subjects.
In this piece, the Virgin Mary, adorned in a vibrant blue robe, tenderly holds the infant Jesus, who is seated on her lap. To her right sits Saint Anne, cloaked in a red garment with a white veil, making a gesture of blessing with her right hand. Opposite them, a kneeling Franciscan donor, dressed in the traditional brown habit of the Order, clasps his hands in prayer. The composition is set against a serene, bucolic landscape featuring distant rolling hills and a backdrop of trees and rocky outcrops, creating a tranquil and contemplative atmosphere. An open book lies on a stone ledge to the left, symbolizing wisdom and possibly the Scripture. This artwork is a profound example of the fine realism and devotional intensity that characterize Northern Renaissance painting.
