23 - Flemish School, 16th century. After a model by Dirk Bouts (ca. 1415/1420–1475).

Flemish School, 16th century. After a model by Dirk Bouts (ca. 1415/1420–1475). “Virgin of Tenderness with the Child.” Oil on panel. Shows signs of wear and crazing. Measurements: 40 x 32 x 1 cm. This painting reproduces one of the most highly regarded Marian compositions by Dirk Bouts, a key figure in the 15th-century Flemish School and one of the leading representatives of Leuven painting. Its particular significance lies in its close connection to a model of which important versions are preserved at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Museo Nazionale del Bargello in Florence, and the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco. The composition achieved widespread popularity thanks to its ability to transform the traditional religious image into a depiction of extraordinary human intimacy, particularly suited to private devotion. Among the principal references is the *Virgin and Child* at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, dated around 1455–1460 and considered likely to be the principal version of this model. The painting draws inspiration from the ancient Byzantine iconography of the Glykophilousa, or Virgin of Tenderness, reinterpreted by Bouts through the naturalism characteristic of the Flemish school. The closeness of the faces and the Child’s affectionate gesture express a maternal intimacy that encouraged the believer’s emotional identification with the sacred image. The existence of other versions at the Bargello in Florence and at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco—the latter attributed to Bouts and/or his workshop—demonstrates the composition’s success. The painting in San Francisco, dated around 1460, is distinguished by the richness of its ornamental elements, while the panel we are presenting focuses all attention on the figures through a dark background and a notable simplification of decorative elements. This adaptation reflects the continuity of Flemish models throughout the 16th century, when the compositions of the great masters of the Northern Quattrocento continued to be reproduced to meet the demand for devotional images. Dirk Bouts was one of the most important painters of the Low Countries, alongside Jan van Eyck and Rogier van der Weyden. Based in Leuven, where he was highly active as an artist, he made a decisive contribution to the evolution of Flemish painting through a new sensibility toward the depiction of emotions, the study of light, and spatial composition. Among his most celebrated works is the altarpiece of *The Last Supper* in St. Peter’s Church in Leuven, a seminal work of 15th-century Netherlandish painting. His influence endured through his workshop and subsequent generations of artists, who continued to use and reinterpret his models.