An Elaborate Rococo Setting with the Virgin and Child and Saints Defeating Evil, Heresy, and Profane Love

1760s

Vitus Felix Rigl

Associated Names
Vitus Felix Rigl

Artist, German, c. 1717 - 1779

This is a drawing depicting a heavenly scene with cherubs and robed figures amongst clouds. The central focus is a majestic female figure standing upon a decorative sphere, holding a branch, surrounded by rays and being attended by several adoring figures, some kneeling, with halos emanating light. The composition includes metallic shadings, baroque decorative elements such as swirls and floral motifs framing the center, and cherubic figures symmetrically placed around the scene. The piece utilizes a monochromatic palette of blues and whites to create a celestial atmosphere, enhancing its mythological and religious undertones.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    pen and black ink with wash and white heightening on blue prepared laid paper, incised for transfer

  • Credit Line

    Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund

  • Dimensions

    overall: 44.1 x 34.2 cm (17 3/8 x 13 7/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2002.45.1


Artwork history & notes

Provenance

from an 18th - 19th century scrapbook in Private Collection, Oklahoma; Private Collection, Pasadena, California; (Monroe Warshaw, New York); purchased 2002 by NGA.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

2004

  • Six Centuries of Prints and Drawings: Recent Acquisitions, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 2004 - 2005

Bibliography

2002

  • Old Master Drawings. Kunstkabinett, New York (Monroe Warshaw), 2002, no. 9 (entry by Gode Krämer).

Inscriptions

by later hand, lower right in brown ink: v. Felix Rigl Delin.

Wikidata ID

Q64633964

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