Artwork
Madonna and Child
Madonna and Child is an oil painting by the High Renaissance artist Giovanni Battista Cima da Conegliano. It dates from 1504 and is held in the collection of the Uffizi Gallery.
About this work
Overview
Madonna and Child is an oil on panel painting created around 1504 by Cima da Conegliano, currently housed in the Uffizi in Florence.
Subject & Meaning
The painting depicts the Virgin Mary holding the Christ Child in her lap. Mary wears a red dress under a blue cloak, while the infant is nude. Their interaction conveys a sense of peace and tranquility, with Mary's serene gaze meeting the child's curious upturned face.
Technique & Style
Cima da Conegliano employed chiaroscuro to achieve depth and dimensionality. This technique emphasizes contrasts between light and dark, enhancing the three-dimensional quality of the figures against a serene landscape backdrop of rolling hills and water.
History & Provenance
The painting's attribution to Cima da Conegliano was once debated, with some questioning the authenticity of the landscape portion. Restorations in 1984 and 2010 confirmed the work as his, with an early copy attributed to Antonio Maria da Carpi located in the Musei civici di Padova.
Context
Dating is supported by similarities to another Madonna by the artist in the Museo Nazionale Atestino, though that work depicts the Christ Child squeezing Mary's thumb, indicating a slight variation in the artist's early representations of the subject.
Artist & collection
Artist
Giovanni Battista Cima da Conegliano
Giovanni Battista Cima, also called Cima da Conegliano (c. 1459 – c. 1517), was an Italian Renaissance painter, who mostly worked in Venice. He can be considered part of the Venetian school, though he was also…
