Madonna and Child with Saints Francis and Clare

Cima da Conegliano (Giovanni Battista Cima) Italian

ca. 1510

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 606

Together in this painting are Saints Francis and Clare, both from Assisi. Clare, born to a noble family, heard Francis preaching when she was a teenager. She soon after joined a convent under his direction and eventually became the leader of her order. The building in the distance may be the Basilica of Saint Clare in Assisi. This beautifully preserved little panel dates from late in Cima’s career, and it shows the artist faithfully continuing a style originated by Giovanni Bellini in the 1480s. Indeed, Bellini’s signature was added later, falsely, at the bottom.