Madonna in front of the garland

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Madonna in front of the garland (after Antonio Rosselino)
Madonna in front of the garland
after Antonio Rosselino , second half of the 15th century
Stucco relief
71 x 45.5 x 6 cm
Bode Museum Berlin (Ident. No. 1718)

The title Madonna in front of the garland (after Antonio Rossellino) is a relief from the second half of the 15th century . It shows a seated Madonna with the baby Jesus on her lap. The garland is named after the composition in order to distinguish it from other depictions of the Enthroned Madonna . A marble relief , which is in the Hermitage in St. Petersburg , and is attributed to Antonio Rossellino , is considered a stylistic model, but this is controversial. The Berlin model is one of numerous existing stucco models , not all of which can be unequivocally assigned to Rossellino's workshop . The authorship of the Berlin model is also controversial. The relief is part of the sculpture collection of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin and is located in the Bode Museum .

Material and technology

The Berlin model of the Madonna and Child in front of the garland is a stucco relief. This makes it one of numerous models made from this material. Most of these stucco reliefs show slight differences. The original version is polychrome . In addition to gold, blue, white and red were also used.

Status

Antonio Rossellino: Relief of the Madonna in front of the garland , around 1460, Hermitage St. Petersburg

The original polychrome version of the relief has been reconstructed, the colors have been refreshed. The background is painted dark blue. The robe of Mary, the frame and the garland are golden , the robe of the baby Jesus is white. In addition, the child wears colored coral jewelry in red on the wrists and as a necklace. The faces of the figures in the center are brightly painted, with slight accentuation with a bright red.

presentation

The representation "Madonna in front of the garland" is a frequently occurring variation of the Madonna with child representations, namely the Madonna Enthroned. Mary, sitting on a throne , holds her child, who is sitting on her lap, with both hands. Mary's head and the head of the baby Jesus are covered by a halo . The garland of acanthus leaves ( festoon ) in the background gave the composition its name. In addition to a different color design, there are differences in the framing of the figures. Numerous representations with garlands in the background can also be found in semicircular versions.

description

General

The representation of Mary with the child is shown as a relief in a vertical rectangle , framed by two pilasters . The pilasters have a base and a capital . The capital is visible as a Corinthian capital through lateral volutes and leaf decoration . The column shaft is designed ornamentally. A multi-level frieze with ornamental decoration delimits the upper edge of the picture. The lower edge of the picture is also bordered by a frieze with decorative elements. Between the two pilasters, which become clear as a frame, hangs a garland ( festoon ) decorated with acanthus leaves , starting from the inner upper approach , which extends in an arcade-like background. This flows vertically on the right and left edges of the picture through an additional tendril element, at the level of the shoulders of both figures, downwards. The background is painted blue. The frame and the garland of the relief are completely decorated in gold.

Maria

The Madonna is presented to the viewer sitting in a three-quarter view. On the left edge of the picture, a volute of tendrils indicates a throne on which Mary is seated. The throne emerges from the lower field of view. In interaction with the throne, Maria fills almost the entire relief. The throne is almost completely covered by the robe of Mary. Only on the left side does the throne become clear to the viewer. The robe consists of two parts - an upper garment and a petticoat. Both parts of the robe are decorated with different ornaments. Your body is turned slightly to the right. Your gaze is on the child. A small gap can be seen between the heads of Mary and the baby Jesus, which roughly corresponds to the central axis. The baby Jesus sits on her lap and she touches it with her hands. With her right hand she supports the child's upper body, while with her left hand she gently brushes the child's left leg. With a slight tilt of her head, she looks down at the child. The head of Mary is surrounded above by a slightly inclined, filled in halo . Under the halo she wears a veil , which is clearly distinguished by its white color from the blue background and the gold of the hair. Her hair falls carefully at the back of her head. Her face is designed in a light basic color, with a slight reddening accentuating the cheekbones.

Baby jesus

The baby Jesus is presented to the viewer on Maria's lap in a frontal sitting position. Like Mary, the child's head is surrounded by a filled halo. However, this is smaller. The child's gaze is aimed past the mother. The child wears a white robe which runs over the left shoulder, through the right leg, behind the left leg along the body. The child wears red coral jewelry on his wrists and neck . The child grabs his white robe with his hands. With the left hand it touches the hand of the mother who is supporting it. The child touches the mother's thumb and forefinger. By grasping your own garment, numerous folds arise. In addition, the gender of the child becomes visible to the viewer. The child's legs are slightly bent. The child's left leg brushes the mother's right thigh, which is visible through the fold of her upper garment. The golden painted hair of the child becomes clear as playful little strands protruding from the head. The child's light skin tone, his white robe and his colored red jewelry create a strong contrast to the blue background. Individual parts of the face such as the cheeks are accentuated with a slight red.

composition

Antonio Rossellino: Madonna and Child in Front of a Garland , c. 1475–1478, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC

The name “Madonna in front of the garland” is most likely not the work's original title. In terms of composition, the Berlin model is a variant of the Madonna Enthroned. In these motifs, Mary is shown seated on a throne. The baby Jesus is on her lap. In order to distinguish it from this popular Madonna composition, the garland in the background gives this variant its name. Most versions have a garland in the background. The Berlin object is a frequently occurring representation of Mary with the child, which has been made in different versions. The variants differ slightly from each other, so that it can be assumed that there is a large number of works from different workshops. A marble relief in the St. Petersburg Hermitage is regarded as the original model, not least because of the material and the representation. In the Hermitage collection catalog, the alleged original relief is attributed to Antonio Rossellino. However, in this version the garland, which has been replaced by two putti faces, is missing. Variants of a Madonna with a garland in the background can be found on the international art market as well as in numerous museums worldwide.

iconography

The Mother of God is depicted in the representations on which the Berlin model is based as the Madonna Enthroned. The motif of the Enthroned Madonna is a special form of representation of Mary in Byzantine iconography . Mary is especially venerated in Christianity as the mother of Jesus Christ . As Madonna Enthroned, her special position becomes clear. In addition, she is depicted as a woman sitting on a throne. The throne shows Mary as ruler or queen. The placement of the baby Jesus on Mary's lap is typical of these representations. There are different variations in gestures and facial expressions as well as in the placement of the hands of the two figures. Typical of depictions of the Enthroned Madonna was the placing of Mary's right hand on the child's shoulder and the left on his knee. In the Berlin relief, Maria supports the child at chest level with her right hand, while she gently brushes the child's left leg with her left hand.

Authorship

The authorship of the Berlin relief cannot be clearly proven. The Berlin model is one of numerous stucco models. However, not all of these reliefs can be unequivocally assigned to Rossellino's workshop. The authorship of the Berlin model cannot be proven beyond doubt either. In most cases, Antonio Rossellino or his workshop is given as the author, since depicting the Madonna with child was one of Rossellino's specialties. In addition, reference is made to a marble relief from the St. Petersburg Hermitage , which shows strong similarities in the depiction of Mary and the baby Jesus and is attributed to Rossellino. However, there are differentiated opinions in research. In addition to the posture motifs, the hair sections, proportions and the expression of the figures are analyzed as parameters for authorship. In addition to Rossellino, Desiderio da Settignano as well as Francesco di Simone Ferrucci, Domenico Rosselli or Giovanni Bastianini are considered as authors of the Berlin relief. The renowned British art historian John Pope-Hennessy is based on a work by Antonio Rossellino. However, it cannot be proven beyond doubt. Stylistically, the authorship of a Florentine sculptor who was in the vicinity of Rossellino is very likely. Above all, Francesco di Simone Ferrucci and Domenico Rosselli come into question . Stylistic features such as the structure of the garment and the drapery are close to being the author of Francesco di Simone Ferrucci's - so Birgit Langhanke argued that the relief Ferrucci was the originator of the Berlin relief.

Dating

The relief can be classified relatively closely in terms of time. In addition to the second half, the last third of the 15th century is also assumed to be the period of origin - somewhat narrower. The reason for this assessment are similar depictions of the Madonna, which already existed at that time and could have served as a model for the author of the Berlin relief. However, an original model cannot be found. The dating of the marble relief from the Hermitage in St. Petersburg mentioned in the research in this context is also questionable, as it cannot be ruled out beyond any doubt that it is not a relief from the 19th century. The Berlin model also shows similarities to a relief by Gregorio di Lorenzo, which was dated to the period 1460/65. In the inventory catalog of the Bode Museum, the Berlin relief is dated to the second half of the 15th century.

function

The Rossellino relief was probably a work originally made for private devotion . In addition to scenes from the life and suffering of Jesus Christ or depictions of saints , intimate depictions of the Mother of God with her son were a popular subject for devotional images . Maria is often depicted in contemporary clothing. In the case of the Berlin relief, for example, Maria appears as a young patrician wearing a veil and robe in the Florentine fashion style . Pictures, sculptures or reliefs for the exercise of private piety were very popular and reached wide groups of buyers. For this reason, the Madonna reliefs by well-known artists were often produced in series and using inexpensive materials such as stucco.

Provenance

A client of the Berlin model cannot be proven. It was only after the relief was acquired in Florence in 1890 for the Berlin Sculpture Collection and the associated exhibition in the Bode Museum that ownership was clearly established.

literature

  • Birgit Langhanke: The Madonna reliefs in the work of Antonio Rossellino . Dissertation, LMU Munich: Faculty of History and Art, Munich 2013.
  • Marco Pizzo: Catalog entry 26: Bottega di Antonio Rossellino, Madonna con il Bambino , in: Davide Banzato, Franca Pellegrini, Monica De Vincenti (eds.): Dal Medioevo a Canova - Sculture dei Musei Civici di Padova dal Trecento all'Ottocento (exh .-Kat. Padua, Musei Civici agli Eremitano, February 20 - July 16 , 2000 ) , Venice 2000, pp. 103-104.
  • Genevieve Bresc-Bautier (ed.): Les sculptures europeennes du musée du Louvre , Paris 2006.
  • Sergej Androsov: Museo Statale Ermitage - La scultura italiana dal XIV al XVI secolo , Milan 2008, pp. 26-29.
  • Heinz Gottschalk: Antonio Rossellino , Liegnitz 1930.
  • Leo Planiscig: Bernardo and Antonio Rossellino , Vienna 1942.
  • John Pope-Hennessy: The forging of Italian Renaissance Sculpture, in: The Study and Criticism of Italian Sculpture , New York 1980, pp. 223-270, p. 239.
  • Giancarlo Gentilini: Bastianini ei falsi da museo , in: Gazetta Antiquaria 2 (1988), pp. 35-47.
  • Giancarlo Gentilini: Bastianini ei falsi da museo , in: Gazetta Antiquaria 3 (1988), pp. 27-43.
  • Anita F. Moskowitz: The Case of Giovanni Bastianini: A Fair and Balanced View , in: Artibus et Historiae 25 (2004), pp. 157-185.
  • Anita F. Moskowitz: The Case of Giovanni Bastianini - II: A Hung Jury? , in: Artibus et Historiae 27 (2006), pp. 201-217.
  • Anita F. Moskowitz: Forging Authenticity - Bastianini and the Neo-Renaissance in Nineteenth-Century Florence , Florence 2013, p. 102; see in the book also the latest bibliography on Bastianini.
  • Francesco Negri Arnoldi: An Exhibition of Italian Sculpture in London , in: The Burlington Magazine 114 (1972), pp. 646-653.
  • Alfredo Bellandi: Gregorio di Lorenzo - il maestro delle madonne di marmo , Morbio Inferiore 2010, p. 340, no. III.1.59.
  • Frida Schottmüller: The sculptures in stone, Holt, clay and wax. The Italian sculptures of the Renaissance and Baroque . Ed .: Kaiser-Friedrich-Museum Berlin (National Museums in Berlin). Volume 2, Berlin 2013.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Madonna in front of the garland. In: National Museums in Berlin - Database. SMB Berlin, accessed on July 9, 2020 .
  2. ↑ Hermitage Museum: Madonna and Child (relief). In: Online database Hermitage Museum. Retrieved July 5, 2020 .
  3. ^ A b Frida Schottmüller: The sculptures in stone, wood, clay and wax, Volumes 1-2 Staatliche Museen zu Berlin: The sculptures of the Kaiser-Friedrich-Museum. The Italian sculptures of the Renaissance and Baroque . Ed .: Kaiser-Friedrich-Museum Berlin. tape 1-2 . De Gruyter, Berlin 2013, p. 50 .
  4. ^ Museo Statale Ermitage: La scultura italiana dal XIV al XVI secolo . Ed .: Sergej Androsov. Milan 2008, p. 317 f .
  5. ↑ Barnebys Auctions: Madonna and Child. In: Barnebys Auctions. Retrieved July 5, 2020 .
  6. ↑ Birgit Langhanke: The Madonna reliefs in the work of Antonio Rossellino. Dissertation . Ed .: LMU Munich: Faculty of History and Art. Munich 2013, p. 286 .
  7. ^ A b John Pope-Hennessy: The forging of italian renaissance sculpture, in: The study and criticism of Italian sculpture . New York 1980, p. 239 .
  8. ↑ a b Birgit Langhanke: The Madonna reliefs in the work of Antonio Rossellino. Dissertation . Ed .: LMU Munich: Faculty of History and Art. Munich 2013, p. 487 .
  9. ↑ Madonna in front of the garland. In: National Museums in Berlin - Database. SMB, accessed July 9, 2020 .
  10. ^ Alfredo Bellandi: Gregorio di Lorenzo - il maestro delle madonne di marmo . Morbio Inferiore 2010, p. 340 .
  11. ^ SMB: Online database of the National Museums in Berlin. In: Database of the SMB Collection. State Museums in Berlin, accessed on July 3, 2020 .
  12. ^ Karl Schade: Devotional picture: the history of an art-historical term . Publishing house and database for the humanities, Weimar 1996.