Art historian tells story of Christmas on Dec. 14 in virtual talk with La Salle library

The La Salle Public Library virtually will host art historian Laura Mueller at 6 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 14, for a discussion and tour through art that tells the story of Christmas.

The Christmas story has many surprising details as depicted in art. Did midwives help Mary with the baby? Why are there different details about the three kings? Why is a Roman sibyl shown in some pictures?

While the gospels are bedrock sources, there are alternate sources, including the visions and meditations of saints; medieval secular histories; and the Golden Legend, a book that was widely read in the late Middle Ages and still informs some of the Christmas stories.

In this virtual talk, Mueller will look at how the Christmas story was told in art, from the Byzantine era to the Baroque (Rembrandt and Georges de la Tour), with the majority coming from famous Renaissance artists such as Sandro Botticelli and Rogier van der Weyden.

This program is free and open to the public. For information, call the library at 815-223-2341.

Registration information is available through the Program Portal at https://sites.google.com/lasalle.lib.il.us/programportal/adult-programs/christmas-stories.