In the upcoming major exhibition on Mary Magdalene at Museum Catharijneconvent (opening June 25), we are very happy to include several wonderful loans from The Phoebus Foundation in Antwerp, Belgium. One of these loans is a painting attributed to Melchior de la Mars (ca. 1580-1650), a painter from Ghent. He painted at least two remarkable paintings with Mary Magdalene as subject matter (one is in the collection of The Phoebus Foundation, the other is part of the collection of the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium in Brussels).
On invitation of The Phoebus Foundation, I researched the painting in their collection featuring a scene of the dying Mary Magdalene accompanied by angles. In the essay I explore the symbolism of the depicted scene, the historical context in which it was made, and how it emotionally appeals to its viewers. The research essay is now published in the beautiful Phoebus Focus series, fully illustrated, including magnificent detail images.
It is available in Dutch as well as in English, and both editions can be ordered online through the website of Hannibal Books.
Lieke Wijnia 