Artwork
Charity
Charity is an oil painting by the Early Baroque Italian artist Guido Reni. It dates from 1630 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The children represent the vulnerable, innocents dependent on benevolence, while the act of breastfeeding underscores nourishment as both physical and moral.
Guido Reni’s Charity (1630) embodies the allegorical representation of Christian charity, a virtue central to Counter-Reformation ideals. The painting depicts a woman breastfeeding an infant while two young boys cling to her, one gazing upward and the other nestling at her side. The maternal figure, often interpreted as an embodiment of Caritas (Charity), symbolizes selfless love, nourishment, and spiritual sustenance.
The children represent the vulnerable, innocents dependent on benevolence, while the act of breastfeeding underscores nourishment as both physical and moral. Reni’s composition aligns with contemporary religious and artistic conventions, where allegorical figures were personified through humanized, yet idealized, forms to convey abstract virtues. The work’s meaning extends beyond mere representation, encapsulating the theological and social imperative of charity as an act of divine grace.
Technique & Style
The painting is executed in oil paint on a canvas support, described as an oil on canvas work dating to circa 1629–1630. The medium consists of pigments suspended in oil applied to a woven textile ground, a typical technique for seventeenth‑century Italian allegorical painting. The work’s subject, Charity personified as a woman breastfeeding a child, places it within the allegory genre, emphasizing symbolic narrative over portraiture. No specific details about brush handling, surface condition, or later alterations are provided in the sources.
History & Provenance
Guido Reni's oil-on-canvas allegory Charity was created circa 1629–1630. The work's earliest documented appearance occurs in a 1767 inventory belonging to Joseph Wenzel I, Prince of Liechtenstein. It remained within the Liechtenstein princely collection until Johann II, Prince of Liechtenstein, sold it at a Paris auction on May 16, 1882.
Following the sale, the painting entered a private Parisian collection, where it was subsequently misattributed to Simon Vouet around 1933. The piece later passed through two art dealers before being acquired in New York by Mr. and Mrs. Charles Wrightsman in 1968. The Wrightsmans donated the painting to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1974, where it has remained in the collection since.
Guido Reni's Charity is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The museum acquired the work in 1974 following its donation by Mr. and Mrs. Charles Wrightsman. The painting's documented history begins with its inclusion in a 1767 inventory of Joseph Wenzel I, Prince of Liechtenstein.
It remained within the Liechtenstein princely collections until Johann II sold it at a Paris auction on May 16, 1882. Subsequently, the piece resided in a private Parisian collection until approximately 1933, during which time it was misattributed to Simon Vouet. After passing through two art dealers, the Wrightsmans purchased the painting in New York in 1968, six years prior to their gift to the museum.
Overview
Guido Reni's oil on canvas painting, Charity, was likely completed between 1629 and 1630. This work, depicting the allegorical figure of Charity, is a notable example of the artist's mature style. It is currently housed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, having been a generous gift from Mr. and Mrs. Charles Wrightsman in 1974. The piece reflects Reni's classical approach to religious and allegorical subjects.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Guido Reni was an Italian Baroque painter, although his works showed a classical manner, similar to Simon Vouet, Nicolas Poussin, and Philippe de Champaigne.
