Course: The Metropolitan Museum of Art > Unit 1
Lesson 3: Devotion- Rossellino, Madonna and Child with Angels
- Pensive Bodhisattva
- Curtain of the Tabernacle
- Berlinghiero, Madonna and Child
- Plaque with the Journey to Emmaus and Noli Me Tangere
- Rembrandt, The Last Supper, after Leonardo da Vinci
- Bassano’s The Baptism of Christ
- Relief of the Betrayal and Arrest of Jesus
- Cult Image of the God Ptah
- Plaque with Censing Angels
- Mahakala, Protector of the Tent
- Blake, The Parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins
Rossellino, Madonna and Child with Angels
Met curator Luke Syson on faith in Antonio Rossellino’s Madonna and Child with Angels, c. 1455–60.
Antonio Rossellino was among the most gifted sculptors of his generation, and his reliefs of the Virgin and Child are justly celebrated. This example, carved from mottled brown marble about 1455–60, is particularly successful. The Virgin sits on an elaborate throne, with scrolled armrests projecting in high relief. Both she and the Christ Child in her arms seem strangely subdued, perhaps contemplating Christ's future suffering. The protective, caressing gesture of the Virgin's left hand is especially poignant.
The surface is richly contoured and decorated, and the concern for finish extends to the background, which is enlivened by the heads and feathery wings of seraphim. Typical of painters of the period is the sculptor's attention to ornamental detail: the fringe of the Virgin's mantle, the haloes, and the strands of hair of both Virgin and Child are delicately highlighted with touches of gilding.
View this work on metmuseum.org.
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- 2:21- "Something which is profoundly beautiful on a human level has the capacity to transport beyond daily experience."
Abbe Suger, the developer of Gothic Architecture with its elegant arches and stained-glass windows, would certainly agree. He once wrote: "The dull mind rises to truth through that which is material." I love how this video echoes Suger's sentiment. :)(4 votes)