Madonna and Child
c. 1470/1475
Medium
tempera on panel transferred to hardboard
Dimensions
painted surface: 70.8 x 48.9 cm (27 7/8 x 19 1/4 in.) overall size: 73 x 50.2 cm (28 3/4 x 19 3/4 in.) framed: 115.6 x 89.2 x 7.6 cm (45 1/2 x 35 1/8 x 3 in.)
Classification
Painting
Department
CIS-R
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Samuel H. Kress Collection
Accession Number
1961.9.49
Art Historical Context
Domenico Ghirlandaio's *Madonna and Child*, painted around 1470–1475, exemplifies the devotional art of early Renaissance Florence. Ghirlandaio, a fresco painter and teacher to Michelangelo, crafted this intimate tempera on panel in his characteristic style—marked by precise detail, lifelike figures, and a sense of realism. Tempera, made from pigments bound with egg yolk, allowed for the jewel-like colors and fine brushwork that bring the Virgin Mary's tender gaze and the Christ Child's gentle form to vivid life, a technique central to Italian panel painting before oil gained prominence. This...