Holy Family with an angel.

Angelica Kauffmann painted this Holy Family with an angel in 1807, near the end of her career in Rome. The Swiss-born painter had been one of the founding members of the Royal Academy in London in 1768—one of only two women—before returning to the Continent. This late devotional work at the John Paul II Collection shows her continued engagement with religious subjects. Characteristic of the artist's mature approach, the work displays graceful, decorative Neoclassicism combining classical subject matter with a lyrical sweetness, soft color, elegant figure types, pendant portraits and mythological scenes.

Kauffmann's refined Neoclassical style renders the sacred figures with gentle modeling and a warm, harmonious palette, the graceful composition reflecting her training in the Roman classical tradition.