St. Mary, little Jesus and st. Katharina

This painting of Saints Mary, the Infant Jesus, and Saint Catherine by Cortona, dating to around 1650, is a conventional devotional subject treated with the warm, fluent style of his mature period. The work's location in the National Gallery of Armenia reflects the wide dispersal of Italian Baroque painting through centuries of collecting. Characteristic of the artist's mature approach, the work displays exuberant illusionistic ceiling frescoes, rich warm color, dynamic figural groups that burst through painted architectural frames into the viewer's space.

The devotional composition arranges the sacred figures with characteristic Baroque warmth and fluency. Cortona's rich palette and confident brushwork create an image of devotional beauty.