Master of the Female Half-Lengths

With A.S. Drey, Munich;

From whom acquired by Rosa Askonas (née Fürth; 1891-1980), Vienna, 1922;

Confiscated by the Gestapo in 1940 and subsequently sold through VUGESTA;

Restituted to Rosa Askonas, Montreal, 1957;

Thence by descent to the present collectors.

W. Michiel, "Das Streben nach Form," in Innen Dekoration 37 (October 1926), p. 378, reproduced (in situ).

This tender and intimate depiction of the Virgin and Child was produced by the Master of the Female Half-Lengths. So name by Max J. Friedländer for the artist's frequent depiction of half-length saints, sibyls, and elegantly attired young women, the painter oversaw one of the most productive workshops in early-sixteenth-century Antwerp. The elegant Virgin typifies his refined style, which drew inspiration from painters in Bruges, such as Adriaen Isenbrandt. The Virgin's oval face, with its long, slender nose, firmly closed pink lips, finely drawn eyebrows, and centrally-parted wavy hair, is characteristic of the artist.

In 1938 after the Anschluss, Carl Askonas' hosiery and glove factory, Heller & Askonas was “Aryanized" and his other property confiscated. In the same year, Carl and his wife, Rosa were forced to leave Vienna and applied for an export license that included the present work. While the application was denied for some works, it was granted for this one. The painting was packed and ready to be shipped abroad, however, their packed goods were seized by the Gestapo and sold before the family emigrated to Canada. Following the war, the Madonna and Child was restituted to the family, in whose collection it has since remained.