Dem Heiligen Antonius erscheint die Mutter Gottes mit dem Jesuskind 

Giovanni Andrea Sirani made this drawing of Saint Anthony being visited by the Virgin Mary and infant Jesus, sometime in the mid-17th century. It is rendered in pen and brush with grey wash and white heightening over black chalk. Such a drawing can give us insight into the culture of Baroque Bologna. The city was then an important centre for religious art and learning, and Sirani’s workshop would have been part of the city's broader artistic and intellectual ecosystem. The emphasis on divine visions, like that of Saint Anthony, reflects the period’s religious intensity. We can compare the pious drama to stagecraft through the way it uses visual codes to communicate spiritual messages. The kneeling saint with his upturned gaze contrasts with the Virgin and Child elevated on a cloud of cherubic faces. To better understand this work, historians consult a wide range of resources, from theological tracts to artists' biographies. That is how we place works of art within their full cultural and institutional contexts.