Ambrosius Benson

Ambrosius Benson was an Italian-born painter who worked in Bruges and is counted among the Flemish painters. His religious pictures and portraits are calm and polished, and he often painted women reading.

Born in Italy, he trained in Bruges with Gerard David and became a master in 1519. He became a citizen of Bruges and ran a busy workshop there, and his paintings were especially popular in Spain, where several still hang in the cathedrals of Segovia and Burgos. He also painted portraits and elegant outdoor scenes.

His Magdalen Reading of 1535 is in the National Gallery in London, and the Prado holds a group of his works. Look at the smooth, oval faces of his women and the careful details of books, jars and fabrics.