A young woman sits on a cushion on the floor, her back against a chest, head in a book. Every detail is so matter-of-fact, from the silk and fur of her clothes to the way her lidded eyes focus exclusively on the illuminated manuscript.
Van der Weyden's realism and technical skill in 'The Magdalen Reading' from the 1430s increased the immediacy and appeal of the medieval church to ordinary people, especially women.
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