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Holy Family with Saints Anne, Catherine of Alexandria, and Mary Magdalene (Framed)

Nosadella

The J. Paul Getty Museum

The J. Paul Getty Museum
Los Angeles, United States

This panel, alive with vibrant hues and communicative expressions, illustrates Nosadella’s powers of artistic invention. Huddled closely together, the Virgin suckles the infant Christ while Mary Magdalene and Saint Catherine of Alexandria look on in adoration. Joseph stands behind them, conversing with the Virgin’s mother, Saint Anne, while two cherubim observe the scene timidly from the upper right. Sitting on the floor as a sign of her humility, the Virgin and saints are arranged in a loose pyramidal shape, and appear in contorted poses and compressed into a tight space. The faces of the three young women are classically idealized, and they are swathed in garments of bright, vivid colors. Mary Magdalene and Saint Catherine wear jewelry and expensively brocaded fabrics, which contrast with the simpler garments worn by the Virgin, Joseph, and Saint Anne.

Details of Nosadella's development over his short career, spanning just twenty years, remain unclear. Bolognese biographer Carlo Cesare Malvasia (1616 – 1693) noted that "the few works by him that are known … are distinguished by their good color,” and described the artist’s compositions as “powerful, singular, and resolute.”


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  • Title: Holy Family with Saints Anne, Catherine of Alexandria, and Mary Magdalene (Framed)
  • Creator: Nosadella
  • Date Created: about 1560s
  • Physical Dimensions: 101.3 × 77.2 cm (39 7/8 × 30 3/8 in.)
  • Type: Painting
  • External Link: Find out more about this object on the Museum website.
  • Medium: Oil on panel
  • Terms of Use: Open Content
  • Number: 85.PB.310
  • Culture: Italian
  • Credit Line: The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
  • Creator Display Name: Nosadella (Italian (Bolognese), active about 1550 - 1571)
  • Classification: Paintings (Visual Works)
The J. Paul Getty Museum

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