1510 (ca), Vittore Carpaccio, Virgin Reading -- National Gallery of Art (Washington)
From the exhibition label: The woman in this painting wears fashionable Venetian dress instead of the traditional blue cloak of the Virgin Mary. Equally unconventional is her pose in profile. For these reasons, some scholars in the past had assumed she represents a female saint. However, the partial presence of the infant Jesus (the restoration found a part of his arm near the left edge; the rest of the figure was cut away) confirms she is likely the Virgin, and that the surprising composition presents an innovative rethinking of the Madonna and Child theme.
1510 (ca), Vittore Carpaccio, Virgin Reading -- National Gallery of Art (Washington)
From the exhibition label: The woman in this painting wears fashionable Venetian dress instead of the traditional blue cloak of the Virgin Mary. Equally unconventional is her pose in profile. For these reasons, some scholars in the past had assumed she represents a female saint. However, the partial presence of the infant Jesus (the restoration found a part of his arm near the left edge; the rest of the figure was cut away) confirms she is likely the Virgin, and that the surprising composition presents an innovative rethinking of the Madonna and Child theme.