Madonna and Child in the Clouds, Federico Barocci | Mia

Virgin holding child; sitting on clouds; putti upper corners — Madonna and Child in the Clouds, c. 1581
Federico Barocci
Etching
Gift of John Crosby P.47.1048
Not on View
In its efforts to fight the Protestant Reformation of the 1500s, the Roman Catholic Church commissioned artists to produce tender, emotional images that might make its theology more approachable. Federico Barocci was a leading painter of such works. He made just a few prints, but they proved enormously popular and influential. In this freely and delicately drawn etching, he depicts the Virgin Mary as the Queen of Heaven enthroned on a cloud. Her son, Jesus, naked and vulnerable, uses his right hand to bless us and his left to hold a rose whose thorns foreshadow the crown of thorns he is forced to wear prior to his crucifixion.

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Details

Title: Madonna and Child in the Clouds
Dated: c. 1581
Artist: Federico Barocci
Nationality: Italian
Artist Life: (Urbino), c. 1535–1612
Role: Artist
Gallery: Not on View
Department: European Art
Dimension: 6 1/8 x 4 1/4 in. (15.56 x 10.8 cm) (image, sheet)11 15/16 x 10 in. (30.32 x 25.4 cm) (mount)18 x 14 1/16 in. (45.72 x 35.72 cm) (mat)
Credit: Gift of John Crosby
Accession Number: P.47.1048
Medium: Etching
Country: Italy
Century: 16th century
Rights: Public Domain
Classification: Prints
Catalogue Raisonne: Bartsch XVII.3.2; Bury 2001, no.43, TIB XXXIV.10.2(3)
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Curator Approved: This record has been reviewed by our curatorial staff but may be incomplete. These records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.

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