painting

Two Girls as Saint Agnes and Saint Dorothy

Michaelina Wautier

Two girls pose as Saint Agnes and Saint Dorothea. Their identity is unknown. Wautier painted their portraits life-sized and in vivid colours. Portraying yourself or your children as historical or allegorical figures is called a portrait historié. The theme was usually drawn from the Bible or classical stories. Non-biblical saints like these two martyrs were also successful. They were appropriate figures for girls to identify with, as many 17th-century parents may have wished their daughters to grow up following their example.

About this work

Object details

TitleTwo Girls as Saint Agnes and Saint Dorothy
Mediumoil on canvas
Measurements89,7 × 122 cm
Inventory number599

More about this work

In the 17th century female painters had to content themselves with domestic subjects. They depicted objects, flowers and food in still lifes, while housemates modelled for portraits. The two genres were not highly rated. Michaelina Wautier broke the conventions by also painting genre scenes, mythological subjects and large altarpieces. She was unmarried and shared a studio with her brother in Brussels. There, like her male colleagues, she worked with live models. That Wautier was skilled in various genres is clear from this portrait historié. Two girls, shown half-length and life-sized, are standing by a table. Hanging behind them is a red cloth that lights up their faces. The blonde girl is stroking a lamb (agnus). She is playing the part of St Agnes. She is wearing a loose yellow cloak that is also mentioned in the Legenda aurea, a medieval collection of saints' lives. The other girl is laying roses around a basket of apples and is holding a martyr’s palm in her left hand. She is acting as St Dorothy. According to the legend, Dorothy foretold an unbeliever that he would receive a hamper of apples and flowers from the heavenly Paradise after her death. That happened, and he converted immediately. It is clear from their faces that this is a double portrait. The resemblance between the girls is so close that they could be sisters, for they have the same full lips, slightly protruding chins with a cleft, heavy eyelids and long eyebrows. Their noses differ. What is remarkable about this portrait is that the girls are not looking at the viewer, and have no eye contact. The positions of their heads though, do suggest intimacy and interaction. The scene seems to capture a frozen moment in their game. In addition to the balanced composition, Wautier displays her mastery in depicting light and textures. It is not known who the girls were. K. Van der Stighelen suggests, without evidence, that they may have been nieces of the artist because of the lifelike depiction and personal touch. Whoever they were, they probably belonged to the well-to-do Brussels upper class or aristocracy. Their parents chose this subject so as to proclaim their Roman Catholic faith. It was not uncommon for clients to have themselves or their children portrayed as figures from the Bible or as saints. Both of these martyrs were models for young girls because of their chastity and piety. In the 17th century parents undoubtedly wanted their children to grow up following their example. Perhaps these two children were even named after these saints. Michaelina Wautier was held in high regard in her lifetime. She was a visitor at the court of Archduke Leopold-Wilhelm, a famous art collector who had four paintings of hers, together with works by Rubens and Van Dyck. This particular painting was first attributed to an anonymous master before being given to Thomas Willeboirts Bosschaert (1614-1654). In 2003 P.-Y. Kairis demonstrated on stylistic grounds that it is most definitely by Wautier.