Hugo van der Goes

Hugo van der Goes’s paintings give Christian narratives a concentrated emotional presence through faces, gesture, and closely described material details. The Portinari Altarpiece places the Adoration of the Shepherds at the center of a large triptych, with donors and saints on its wings. Painted in the Netherlands for a Florentine patron, it connects Northern oil technique with Italian religious patronage. The Adoration of the Kings uses another carefully arranged gathering to organize the sacred encounter.