The Holy Family on the Steps

The Holy Family on the Steps, an oil on canvas painting dated 1648, is currently attributed jointly to an Anonymous Artist and the highly influential French classical painter Nicolas Poussin. Created near the conclusion of the period 1601 to 1650, this work exemplifies the synthesis of High Baroque drama and Classical restraint predominant in Roman academic circles of the mid-seventeenth century. While Poussin is primarily celebrated for his monumental classical history paintings, his treatments of quieter, biblical domestic scenes, like this one, hold significant art historical importance.

The composition is structured around the architectural element of a stone staircase, providing a geometrical framework typical of the artist’s mature style. The figures of the Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph, and the infant Jesus occupy the central space, depicted in a moment of quiet contemplation and domesticity. The artist meticulously manages the rich blue and red drapery and the interplay of subtle light and shadow, demonstrating a technical precision characteristic of the Roman classical tradition. Despite the ambiguity of the provenance, which lists the culture as Unknown, the stylistic characteristics align closely with the circle of Poussin during his later decades working in Rome.

The ambiguity in the attribution, oscillating between an Anonymous Artist and Poussin himself, reflects the complexities of connoisseurship regarding works produced late in the artist’s life or by members of his close studio. Currently residing in the collection of the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., the canvas offers valuable insight into the devotional themes popular during this transitional era of European painting. Researchers and enthusiasts frequently consult this work, and high-resolution prints derived from the public domain images of The Holy Family on the Steps are widely accessible for study.