Year: 2022
Medium: acrylic, oil on canvas
Dimensions: 179 x 149.5 cm (70 1/2 x 58 7/8 in.)
Acquired from Sotheby's, 2023
Pare produces paintings that quote from classical works. In this work, he takes as his subject Jan van Eyck’s painting of the same title (c. 1435). In van Eyck’s original, the infant Christ sits upon the lap of the Virgin Mary, herself cloaked in a red robe, while an angel behind her reaches forward to place a crown upon her head. Nicolas Rolin, who served as Chancellor of the Duchy of Burgundy at the time, kneels to face the holy group, gazing devoutly upon them. The white lily visible in the background, through the arches, is a flower that symbolizes the Virgin Mary. Also depicted in this image with the Virgin Mary is the peacock, which frequently sheds its feathers and accordingly symbolizes the resurrection of Christ. In contrast, Pare reimagines all of the figures, including the angel, as Black. The wings of the angel are taking on the appearance of colorful fabric. The distance landscape is no longer a Burgundian riverscape, but a tropical lakeside scene, complete with palm trees, their leaves spread wide. The decorative tiles of the original have also been replaced with a simpler black-and-white checkerboard pattern.
