Virgin and Saint Anne
by Orsola Caccia

Daughter of the painter Guglielmo Caccia, who passed on to her her first artistic teachings, Orsola devoted herself to the monastic life from around 1620 onwards, and continued to paint uninterruptedly and later moved to the nuns’ convent of Moncalvo together with three sisters.  Her production tends to repeat devotional themes that were tackled by her father, which are delicate still lives and floral depictions, and even miniatures.

The painting here shown, is balanced in composition, with the two musician angels at the sides, and shows the Child Jesus supported by Mary and St Anne in the centre.

The sweetness of the gestures and expressions of the two women is enriched by the presence of symbols connected to Mary (roses) and the theme of rebirth (egg)

Orsola Maddalena Caccia | Virgin and Child with St. Anne | 1630 | oil on canvas, 113 × 72 cm | Parish of St Anthony of Padua | Moncalvo (Asti, Italy)