Artwork
Virgin and Child in Glory with St. Bartholomew, St. John the Baptist, St. Albert and St. Jerome
Virgin and Child in Glory with St. Bartholomew, St. John the Baptist, St. Albert and St. Jerome is an oil painting by the Mannerist artist Camillo Boccaccino. It dates from 1536 and is held in the collection of the Pinacoteca di Brera.
About this work
Overview
Camillo Boccaccino’s 1536 oil painting presents the Virgin Mary enthroned with the infant Christ, elevated amid a luminous sky filled with cherubs. Beneath them stand four male saints—Bartholomew, John the Baptist, Albert, and Jerome—each distinguished by distinct garments and attributes, while a tranquil landscape unfolds in the distance.
Subject & Meaning
The composition emphasizes intercessory devotion, placing the holy mother and child at the apex of a celestial hierarchy. The saints, identifiable by their traditional symbols—a staff with a white flower, books, and colored cloaks—serve as earthly mediators, linking the divine presence above with the viewer’s realm below.
Technique & Style
Executed in oil on canvas, the work exhibits hallmarks of the Italian Mannerist idiom: elongated figures, elegant poses, and a sophisticated handling of light that models forms through subtle chiaroscuro. Boccaccino’s brushwork balances delicate detail in the saints’ attire with a softer atmospheric treatment of clouds and distant foliage.
History & Provenance
Created during Boccaccino’s brief but impactful career in Cremona and Lombardy, the painting entered the collection of Milan’s Pinacoteca di Brera, where it remains on display. The artist’s early death at thirty‑five limited his output, yet this piece reflects his contribution to Northern Italian Mannerism.
Artist & collection
Artist
Camillo Boccaccino (Italian: ; 1511 – 4 January 1546) was an Italian painter and draughtsman, active mainly in Cremona and the region of Lombardy who painted in a Mannerist style.
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