Enjoy this focused selection of short video clips and audio stops featuring M&G paintings depicting elements of the Biblical Christmas story.
Category Archives: Division Page: EXPLORE
Wounded Christ Between Angels
Tempera on panel, mid-1480s
Bartolommeo Vivarini
Venetian, c. 1432–c. 1499
Born in Venice on the island of Murano, Bartolommeo followed his older brother Antonio in becoming an artist and collaborating together on projects as early as 1450. In addition to his sibling’s teaching, he may have studied under Antonello da Messina, the first artist to use oil paint in Italy. However, Bartolommeo’s artistic style with its strong linear quality and hard, sculptural forms suggests possible instruction by Francesco Squarcione of Padua or the influence of one of Squarcione’s greatest students, Andrea Mantegna known for his linear perspective and foreshortening. Although Vivarini’s later works show some influence of Venetian master, Giovanni Bellini.
He, his brother, and nephew Alvise were talented painters. He spent much of his artistic career working in Venice and was quite successful creating large altarpieces in the 1460s and 1470s following the standard Gothic features of gold ground and flattened figures. As the new Renaissance ideals took form in more natural beauty and landscaped backgrounds, Vivarini’s outmoded painting style led him to find work outside the city for more provincial churches, where the artistic innovations were slower to replace his traditional approach.
M&G’s Wounded Christ Between Angels is more than likely a cymatium, the highest decorative panel in the architecture of a polyptych for a church altarpiece. Historians have suggested that M&G’s panel was originally part of one of two large Bartolommeo Vivarini altarpieces that have since been dismembered: the Almenno Polyptych with a focus on St. Bartholmew or possibly the Torre Boldone triptych now in Bergamo’s Galleria dell’ Accademia Carrara.
In looking at the panel, one notices before recognizing Vivarini’s linear style, the bright gold and vivid color choices—both signature elements of the artist’s style. At one point, the work was titled, Pieta, referencing the Byzantine term of Imago Pietatis, meaning Christ of Pity, which developed into the imagery later identified as the Man of Sorrows as seen in M&G’s work.
Vivarini’s thorn-crowned Christ seems to stand in an open sepulcher with His hands resting on a ledge of red marble stone. He presents His wounds to the viewer as He looks down, His face winced in pain. The cross with clearly rendered wood grain is placed behind Him as a reminder of His sacrifice. Two angels hover in mourning beside Him while one looks heavenward and the other watches Christ. Similar to Bergamo’s Trinity with Angels, the background behind the emaciated body of Christ is a vibrant green—a symbolic choice representing the new life that His innocent death and victorious resurrection made possible for mankind.
Erin R. Jones, M&G Executive Director
Published 2026
Every year M&G loans works from its collection to participate in various exhibitions around the world. Peruse the list below and consider visiting the exhibitions to learn more about the world of Old Masters and the museum field. Plus, you can view portions of M&G’s collection on campus here.
Madonna of the Lake —Marco d’Oggiono
North Carolina Museum of Art
October 8, 2022 – July 15, 2026
Gallerie d’ltalia, Milan
November 26, 2026 – April 4, 2027
Esther Accusing Haman —Jan Victors
The Jewish Museum
March 7, 2025 – August 10, 2025
North Carolina Museum of Art
September 20, 2025 – March 8, 2026
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
August 6, 2026 – January 18, 2027
Enjoy the following seasonal Scavenger Hunts to develop and exercise your observational skills! Each option references masterworks selected from M&G’s Collection.
Observers of all ages will not only discover exciting details in each painting or object, but also make connections between art and history.
View online OR print and study up close. As always, there is an Answer Key to check your finds!
Click HERE for a Digital Christmas option.
Click HERE for a Digital Easter option.
M&G Scavenger Hunt for Kids (K5-8th grade): The Easter Story in Art
Available February 9–April 4, Monday-Saturday, 10AM-5PM
To celebrate Easter, families are invited to begin at the Welcome Center for a campus search of special art objects related to the Biblical Easter story–all from M&G’s collection. This self-guided, informative activity (40-55 minutes long) is designed to captivate your child’s imagination and expose them to the life and times of artisans from the past. Return to the Welcome Center with your finished worksheet for a free prize! This M&G activity is FREE.
Art is a record of ideas and messages from the past, reflecting its own time and culture. Sometimes art’s culture is foreign to our own experiences and understanding today, which requires a translation in order for us to grasp the meaning of its intent and the significance in its time. Listen and learn about works of art and their context from M&G’s collection and others—it’s an opportunity to view the world beyond your twenty-first-century perspective and experience. Get started by clicking on the images below.
For students of ALL ages: click and print the coloring sheet, then find inspiration in the Old Master’s original to create your own version! Share your work with others on social media and tag the Museum & Gallery!
Esther Accusing Haman by Jan Victors, Dutch (1619–after 1676)
For a printable coloring sheet click HERE.
The Heavenly Shepherd by Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, Spanish (1617–1682)
For a printable coloring sheet click HERE.
Joseph Sold into Bondage by His Brethren by Giovanni Battista Carlone, Genoese (1603–1684)
For a printable coloring sheet click HERE.
Rest on the Flight to Egypt by Francesco Granacci, Florentine (1469–1543)
For a printable coloring sheet click HERE.
Madonna of the Chair by Unknown 19th-century Artist (copy of Raphael)
For a printable coloring sheet click HERE.
During COVID-19, our regular routines and social interactions were disrupted. However, in the face of ongoing change and uncertainty, what our minds dwell on becomes critical. While beauty has always mattered in our lives, perhaps it shows itself all the more valuable and significant in difficult circumstances. Pause to reflect on a few, beautiful images and ideas represented in M&G’s Collection—things worthy of our thinking.
