Rest on the Flight into Egypt by Joachim Patinir (Interpretation and Analysis)
Rest on the Flight into Egypt Source: Museo del Prado Now that we’re in December, Christmas is drawing closer. So, in honor of the approaching holiday, I want to share a painting by the Northern Renaissance master Joachim Patinir. Like many painters of his time, Patinir focused on religious subjects. One of his religous paintings is Rest on the Flight into Egypt , an oft depicted motif in Christian. The piece depicts a scene from the gospel of Matthew in which an angel appears to Joseph in a dream to warn him that Herod is seeking to kill the Christ child. Upon waking, Joseph took Mary and Jesus and fled to Egypt, where the family was safe. Although the rest on this journey is not specifically mentioned in the bible, it became a part of recognized Christian iconography by the fourteenth century, and, over the years, it has provided the framework for some of the most imaginative pieces of art in Western history. Patinir’s Rest on the Flight into Egypt takes a particularly creative appro...