Artwork
Maria mit Kind
Maria mit Kind is an unspecified painting by the High Renaissance artist Giampietrino. It dates from 1517 and is held in the collection of the Bavarian State Painting Collections.
About this work
Overview
Created in 1517, *Maria mit Kind* is a religious painting by the Lombard artist Giampietrino, identified with Giovanni Pietro Rizzoli. Executed during the High Renaissance, it portrays the Virgin Mary holding the infant Christ and is currently displayed in Munich’s Alte Pinakothek.
Subject & Meaning
The composition presents a solemn Madonna seated with the Christ Child nestled against her breast. Both figures are rendered with restrained expressions; Mary’s gaze is calm while the child looks upward, suggesting a contemplative interaction that underscores the theological bond between mother and son.
Technique & Style
Giampietrino employs a softened modeling of forms that echoes Leonardo’s sfumato, allowing transitions between light and shadow to blur edges subtly. The palette is muted, with dark outer garments contrasted by a lighter under‑garment, and the background landscape recedes in gentle grays, enhancing the central figures through chiaroscuro.
History & Provenance
The work entered the collection of the Alte Pinakothek in the 19th century, where it remains part of the museum’s Renaissance holdings. Documentation links the painting to Giampietrino’s workshop, noting his practice of adapting motifs and compositional devices popularized by Leonardo and his followers.
Artist & collection
Artist
Giampietrino, probably Giovanni Pietro Rizzoli (active 1495–1549), was a north Italian painter of the Lombard school and Leonardo's circle, succinctly characterized by S. J. Freedberg as an "exploiter of Leonardo's repertory."
