This March, two significant works of art will be shown together for the first time at the TEFAF art fair in Maastricht, offering a rare opportunity to explore the connection between the Baroque and Renaissance periods.

A portrait by Diego Velázquez of the devout Mother Jerónima de la Fuente, painted in 1620, will be exhibited alongside a 25cm bronze cast of Christ, thought to have been modelled by Michelangelo.

Velázquez’s portrait of Mother Jerónima, painted when she was 66 years old, depicts the nun as a formidable and devout woman, holding a crucifix in her right hand while clasping a book in her left.

The painting, which was housed in a Toledo convent before passing into a Madrid family’s hands in the 1940s, is being publicly displayed for the first time in the Netherlands. It portrays Mother Jerónima as a woman of remarkable strength and purpose, who embarked on an extraordinary journey across the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans to establish the first convent in the Philippines.

The bronze corpus of Christ, priced at €1.8 million (£1.5 million), is believed to be based on a design by Michelangelo, crafted by his associate Guglielmo della Porta in Rome around the late 16th century. The work is thought to have inspired the crucifix held by Mother Jerónima in Velázquez’s portrait. The figure of Christ, with its detailed anatomical accuracy, reflects Michelangelo’s deep exploration of spirituality and the human form. This particular bronze corpus arrived in Seville in 1597, where it became highly influential, with multiple casts being produced and even painted versions created by artists such as Francisco Pacheco, Velázquez’s teacher.

Stuart Lochhead, the art dealer behind the exhibition, emphasises that the focus of the display is not only on the well-known names of Velázquez and Michelangelo but also on the stories behind these works. He highlights the relationship between Michelangelo and the poet Vittoria Colonna, which may have influenced the tender and anatomical design of the Christ figure. “We’re bringing in the influence of Vittoria Colonna and Jerónima into the creation of two works of art, which normally you’d look at and say: ‘Well, these were made by the great artists and that’s the end of the story.’ But it’s not,” Lochhead told the Guardian. 

The connection between Velázquez and Michelangelo’s work is also intriguing, with the crucifix in Mother Jerónima’s hand possibly being one of the many casts produced from Michelangelo’s original bronze model. Velázquez’s connection to the Seville artist Francisco Pacheco, who painted his own version of the bronze corpus, suggests that Velázquez would have been familiar with the model, raising questions about whether the crucifix in the nun’s hand was a gift or an object from the artist’s workshop.

Lochhead stresses that the aim of the exhibition is not only to showcase these two iconic pieces but also to explore their historical and spiritual significance. While the exhibition will offer an opportunity to appreciate the artistic brilliance of both Velázquez and Michelangelo, it also serves as a reminder of the personal and religious devotion that influenced their works. “We’re able to understand why these things were made - their backstory and who influenced them,” says Lochhead.

The display seeks to highlight the role of faith and the connection between artist, subject, and inspiration, offering a deeper understanding of the motivations behind the creation of these remarkable works of art.

Though it is unclear whether the two pieces will remain together following the fair, Lochhead is hopeful that their time together in Maastricht will encourage visitors to reflect on the personal and spiritual connections that shaped their creation. The exhibition at TEFAF, running from 15 March, will provide visitors with a rare chance to see these masterpieces side by side.