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The Death of General Wolfe

Benjamin West
The Death of General Wolfe (Detail), 1770
oil on canvas
152.6 x 214.5 cm
Transfer from the Canadian War Memorials, 1921 (Gift of the 2nd Duke of Westminster, England, 1918)
National Gallery of Canada (no. 8007)

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Suffer Little Children to Come unto MeEnlarge image

Suffer Little Children to Come unto Me, c. 1618-1620

Anthony van Dyck
Flemish, 1599 - 1641
oil on canvas
131.4 x 198.2 cm
Purchased 1937
National Gallery of Canada (no. 4293)

Past and present come together: the family of one of the painter's contemporaries appears in a biblical scene. Their portraits are carefully observed and distinctive, while the Christ and the apostles are treated more generically. The unidentified family may have commissioned the work to commemorate their eldest son's first communion - to which Christ's blessing would refer. This painting dates to the painter's early years in Antwerp, when he was associated with Rubens' studio. As he painted, van Dyck altered the composition: in the shadow between the mother and father can just be seen the first idea for the placement of a head, later abandoned. He also enlarged the painting: slight differences in the paint to the left and at the base show the original extent of the painted surface.

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