Mater Dolorosa (Sorrowing Virgin)

Oil on panelWorkshop of Dieric Bouts (Netherlandish, 1415–1475)/c. 1490

Description

This grieving Madonna likely originally faced another panel depicting a similarly sorrowful Christ crowned with thorns. Portable devotional diptychs such as these were extremely popular in Northern Europe, and workshops like that of artist Dieric Bouts had a system for meeting this demand. A master artist’s design book, a closely guarded tool of the workshop, contained drawings that could be transferred by assistants directly onto the surface of a panel. The assistants could use the same drawing multiple times, as they did for this panel and others of the same subject, allowing for efficient production while maintaining the quality of the master’s design.

Provenance

Williams, Paris, possibly by 1871 until 1889 [according to the catalogue of the Spiridon sale; the claim that Williams owned it in 1871, made in Brussels 1935 and Paris 1935, cannot be verified]; sold to Joseph Spiridon, Paris, 1889; sold, Cassirer and Helbing, Berlin, May 31, 1929, no. 71, as workshop of Dieric Bouts, to Baron Joseph van der Elst (d. 1971), Brussels and numerous diplomatic posts; by descent to his son, François van der Elst; on loan to the Cleveland Museum of Art, June 1978–Oct. 1980 [dates of the loan supplied by Mary Suzor, Registrar at the Cleveland Museum of Art]; sold to the Art Institute through Richard Collins as agent, 1986.

Dimensions

38.7 × 30.3 cm (15 1/4 × 11 7/8 in.)

Source

The Art Institute of Chicago

Movement / Period

15th century

Accession No

110673

Official Citations

[The Art Institute of Chicago Official Record][Full Resolution Image]

Curatorial Affinity Stream

Continuing the Universe of Workshop of Dieric Bouts (Netherlandish, 1415–1475)

15th century • Netherlands • Harmonious Works & Contemporaries

Continuous Discovery