"Madonna and Child"
by Marianne Stokes

Glass and solder ornament.

Gorgeous and haunting, this Madonna by Marianne Stokes arrests the eye with its colors and composition, and tells of the cross with its symbols. Mary and Jesus are exquisitely beautiful. Mary is gently pulling back the veil to show us her baby, our Redeemer. They are both serene. Yet behind them, the play or thorns and thistles suggest the life this baby will have as He brings us Salvation.

Marianne Stokes (1855-1927) had a long and happy career as an artist. Her husband was an artist (Arthur Stokes), and they traveled the world together, painting. Midway in her career, she began to paint in the style of the Pre-Raphaelites, and she is best known today for her Madonna and Child paintings from that period. This is perhaps the most famous one, although they are all wonderful. It is thought that she got the idea for the painting while she and Arthur were traveling in 1907 in what is today known as Croatia.

(source: eclecticlight.co)

Thanks!
Sue & John

"In order to communicate the message entrusted to her by Christ, the Church needs art." ~ St. Pope John Paul II

Original image is out-of-copyright. Descriptive text and image alterations (hence the whole new image) © by Sue Kouma Johnson - Classic Catholic Art.