The Holy Family with John Elizabeth and the Infant John the Baptist 

Nicolas Poussin, a leading painter of the French Baroque style, created "The Holy Family with John Elizabeth and the Infant John the Baptist" to reflect the religious and cultural values of 17th-century Europe. Poussin’s portrayal of the Holy Family in a classical landscape invites us to consider the period’s emphasis on order and reason, as well as its religious intensity. The figures are serene and idealized, embodying the virtues of piety and familial love that were highly esteemed during the Counter-Reformation. However, the inclusion of John the Baptist, who would grow up to challenge social norms, hints at the complex relationships between religious doctrine and individual agency. The emotional restraint in the figures' faces belies the radical implications of the Christian narrative for the oppressed and marginalized. The painting acts as both a celebration of faith and an invitation to contemplate the humanity within these divine figures.