The Virgin and Child enthroned with Sts Peter and John the Baptist, and two musician child angels 1534 - 1566

This drawing of the Virgin and Child with Saints Peter and John the Baptist, and two musician child angels was made anonymously, on paper, using pen and brown ink, with a brown wash, heightened with white. The drawing's linear quality reveals a lot about the artist's process. It is made up of carefully hatched parallel lines, which the artist has used to build up areas of tone and shadow. Look closely, and you will notice that some of the lines are bolder and more confident than others, suggesting that the artist was experimenting with different levels of pressure and control. The drawing looks unfinished, a testament to the labor and time needed to achieve its complex composition. The decision to use humble materials such as pen and ink, rather than more expensive paints or pigments, speaks to a wider social context in which art was often a collaborative effort. It was made with skilled labor, but accessible materials, reflecting the complex relationship between art, craft, and commerce in the early modern period.