Who painted The Holy Family, with the Infant St. John?

The Holy Family, with the Infant St. John was painted by Raphael in 1490.

Where can I see The Holy Family, with the Infant St. John?

The Holy Family, with the Infant St. John is held by Victoria and Albert Museum.

What movement is The Holy Family, with the Infant St. John?

The Holy Family, with the Infant St. John is associated with High Renaissance.

Artwork

The Holy Family, with the Infant St. John

Raphael , 1490

The Holy Family, with the Infant St. John is a print by the High Renaissance artist Raphael. It dates from 1490 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.

About this work

Overview

This paper print reproduces a preparatory study by Raphael, titled *The Holy Family, with the Infant St. John* and also known as *La Vierge à longue cuisse*. The composition gathers the Virgin Mary, the infant Christ, and a young Saint John the Baptist within an intimate interior, framed by the remnants of a stone wall and an arched doorway.

Subject & Meaning

The central figures—Mary cradling the Christ child, a bearded, haloed man kneeling with a staff, and a second haloed child at play—evoke the biblical narrative of the Holy Family while also reflecting Renaissance humanist interest in domestic tenderness and the sanctity of everyday life.

Technique & Style

Raphael’s study employs chiaroscuro shading to model the figures, allowing them to emerge from the rough, crumbling background. The use of soft transitions between light and shadow anticipates the sfumato technique that later artists would develop to achieve a smoky, atmospheric effect.

History & Provenance

The print is a later reproduction of Raphael’s original drawing, created to disseminate the master’s compositional ideas. It circulated among collectors and artists interested in the High Renaissance approach to religious subjects, preserving the study’s visual information beyond the fragile hand‑drawn original.