St. Luke Drawing a Portrait of the Virgin Mary

Rogier van der Weyden depicted the legend of St. Luke, patron saint of painters, drawing the Virgin Mary from life. The Virgin nurses the Christ Child while Luke sketches her likeness. Through an open window, a detailed landscape and river scene unfold with crystalline Northern clarity.

This Northern Renaissance work may be a self-portrait: Luke's features reportedly resemble Rogier's. The painting established iconography that countless artists would follow. Every surface gleams with fine detail, from the tiles to the Virgin's robes. This version hangs at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; several other versions exist.