Artwork
The Adoration of the Shepherds
The Adoration of the Shepherds is an oil painting by the Northern Renaissance artist Adriaen Isenbrandt. It dates from 1530 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
- Inscription
- Inscribed:center right at base of ornament on the square column at right: NSI (the 'S' in reverse)
About this work
Technique & Style
, having passed through several private collections before its acquisition in 1978.
Created in 1530, this work is executed in oil paint on a wooden panel support. The painting measures 74.6 cm in height and 57 cm in width. As a religious composition depicting the adoration of the shepherds and the Christ Child, it follows the conventions of early sixteenth-century Northern Renaissance art.
Oil on panel was the standard technical choice for such devotional images, allowing the detailed rendering and rich color associated with the artist Adriaen Isenbrant. The work is in the collection of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., having passed through several private collections before its acquisition in 1978.
History & Provenance
Adriaen Isenbrant's The Adoration of the Shepherds, an oil on panel, is dated 1530. The earliest recorded owner in the provenance is the Kleinberger Gallery in Paris. By June 1936 the panel had passed to Paul Cassirer in Amsterdam, and by 1937 to Rudolf Heinemann of New York, who retained it until January 1975.
The work then entered the stock of Feilchenfeldt in Zurich, which sold it in 1978 to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., where it remains in the permanent collection. Provenance details were corroborated by Walter M. Feilchenfeldt and Mrs. Rudolf Heinemann through the NGA curatorial files. Specific exhibition details are not provided in the sources.
Context
The Adoration of the Shepherds is a 1530 oil on panel religious painting by Adriaen Isenbrant that portrays the Christ Child adored by the shepherds. It belongs to the religious genre and was handled by the Kleinberger Gallery in Paris before passing through the collections of Rudolf Heinemann and the dealer Walter Feilchenfeldt, as documented in curatorial records. The work entered the National Gallery of Art collection in Washington, D.C., in 1978. Its date, medium, and subject situate it within early sixteenth-century Netherlandish devotional practice.
Overview
This painting, The Adoration of the Shepherds, was created by Adriaen Isenbrant around 1530. Executed in oil on panel, this religious work exemplifies the artist's approach to sacred narratives. It presents a traditional Christian theme, rendered with a focus on human interaction and devotional sentiment.
Subject & Meaning
The composition centers on the Christ Child, surrounded by a group of shepherds. These figures, representing ordinary individuals, are depicted with expressions of gentle reverence as they gaze upon the infant. The scene conveys a sense of quiet intimacy, emphasizing the humble and accessible nature of this pivotal event within Christian theology.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Adriaen Isenbrandt or Adriaen Ysenbrandt (between 1480 and 1490 – July 1551) was a painter in Bruges, in the final years of Early Netherlandish painting, and the first of the Dutch and Flemish Renaissance painting of the Northern…
- The Adoration of the Shepherds
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