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Raphael's "Madonna of the Meadows"
Raphael painted the "Madonna of the Meadows" in 1505 A.D., during the High Renaissance in Florence, Italy. The medium of this work of art was oil on panel, and it is currently housed at the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna (Kleiner, Mamiya, & Tansey, 2001). The painting shows the Virgin Mary; and it shows Christ Jesus and John the Babtist, as small children. The placement of these three religious figures is in a pyramidal layout (Kleiner, Mamiya, & Tansey, 2001). Raphael uses subtle chiaroscuro (a contrast of light and dark) in the faces and figures of Mary, Jesus, and John (Kleiner, Mamiya, & Tansey, 2001). Raphael used bright colors and clarity in the way he painted his "Madonna of the Meadows". This painting embodies the three elements of the Renaissance which are beauty, science, and spirit (Kleiner, Mamiya, & Tansey, 2001). The cross is the symbol of Christianity. Raphael incorporated the cross in the painting tactfully by having Jesus and John holding it. The setting in a bright, pastoral landscape is symbolic of the great revivial of art, literature, and learning characteristic of the Renaissance.
About the Artist, Raphael.
Raphael, otherwise known as Raffaello Santi, was born in Urbino in 1483 A.D. and died in Rome in 1520 A.D. ( Wirtz, 2000). The first training that Raphael received was from his father, Giovanni Santi, who was a painter and a poet (Wirtz, 2000). In 1500 A.D., Raphael was trained by Pietro Perugino, a well-established artist in Italy. In 1504 A.D., Raphael went to Florence where he was surrounded by many flowering artists of the Renaissance (Wirtz, 2000). Pope Julius II asked Raphael to come to Rome in 1508 A.D., where Raphael did frescos for the Vatican. In 1514 A.D., Raphael became the head of the building work at St. Peter's Cathedral. Raphael is considered one of the greatest painters of the Renaissance (Wirtz, 2000).
References:
Kleiner, F., Mamiya, C., & Tansey, R. (2001). Gardner's Art Through The Ages. Vol.II. N.Y.: Harcourt College Publishers.
Wirtz, Rolf C. (2000). Art and Architecture: Florence. Oldenburg: Konemann.
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