Chicago diptych
Hans Memling·1485
Historical Context
The Chicago diptych, around 1485, at the Art Institute of Chicago, combines a devotional image with a donor portrait in the standard Netherlandish format. The diptych served as a portable altarpiece for private prayer, a significant genre in late medieval personal devotion Hans Memling brought serene, refined beauty to Flemish devotional painting, becoming the leading artist in Bruges after the death of van der Weyden Oil on canvas, increasingly preferred over panel in the sixteenth century, of
Technical Analysis
The two panels are designed to be viewed together, the donor directed toward the sacred scene on the companion panel. Memling's meticulous technique creates a seamless continuity between the two halves.
