Portrait of Margaretha van Oostenrijk

Bernard van Orley painted this portrait of Margaret of Austria around 1525, depicting the regent of the Habsburg Netherlands. Van Orley, as court painter in Brussels, produced multiple portraits of Margaret during her regency. The painting is in the Musée municipal de Bourg-en-Bresse Bernard van Orley introduced Italian Renaissance elements into Flemish painting, serving as court painter in Brussels and designing celebrated tapestry cycles Portraiture flourished during the Renaissance as humani

The official portrait combines Van Orley's Netherlandish precision with the formal dignity required of court portraiture. The detailed rendering of the regent's costume and jewelry reflects the wealth of the Habsburg court.