Golden Madonna

Nell Gertrude Walker Warner

This oil painting on canvas by California artist Nell Walker Warner has an address on the verso from La Cañada, Calif. The original title "Madonna of the Lilacs" is crossed out and "Golden Madonna" is written in pencil.

Warner was known for her still life paintings and was considered by some as “America’s foremost painter of flowers” at the height of her career. Her love of painting and teaching took her from Nebraska to Europe and finally to Carmel, where she painted the flora of Central California’s coastline.

In “Golden Madonna” Warner captures a sweet and intimate scene that might otherwise be overlooked: a small alcove inhabited by a porcelain Madonna and Child, framed by a bright nosegay of Minnow Rock daffodils and the filtering light of a stained glass sun.