Charity

A serene young woman holds two infants against her breast while a third child reaches up to her, the personification of Charity painted as pure grace. Guido Reni was the most admired painter in seventeenth-century Rome, celebrated for a beauty that seemed heaven-sent, and this canvas from about 1630 shows his signature blend of religious feeling and cool idealization. The cool silvers and blues, the soft light and the tender grouping make virtue look effortless.