Lot 1033 D α

This work by Adam Willaerts is thought to be a fragment of a panel originally measuring twice this size. The missing left half of the panel would probably have been a seascape: The genre for which this artist is most well-known. Such a depiction is hinted at in the back left of the present work, and many of the figures are shown looking in this direction. In the centre of this work we see a seated woman and child depicted in a manner reminiscent of the Madonna with Christ. The left side of the image may have incorporated a biblical scene within a coastal setting, which would help explain the slightly incongruous presence of the Virgin and Child in an otherwise worldly image. The largely monochrome palette of the landscape, which is almost overpowered by the more vivid tones of the figures in the foreground, is typical of Willaerts' style.