Terms and conditions of use
Madonna and Child with infant Saint John the Baptist
(c. 1514-1515)
Medium
oil on wood panel
Measurements
45.5 × 35.8 cm
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Purchased with funds donated by Andrew Sisson, 2011
Gallery location
16th & 17th Century Gallery - Painting and Sculpture
Mezzanine linked to Level 1, NGV International
About this work
Painted in the early 1500s, this picture offers new insights into the development of the young Correggio, and the extent to which he was prepared to experiment with form, design and emotion in his work. The composition is partly based on Leonardo’s versions of the subject showing Christ wriggling out of his mother’s arms, but the gesture of Christ blessing John with a caressing hand to the head is Correggio’s own invention. The soft, wispy effects of hair and foliage present a gentle alternative to the crystalline forms of Francia in his version of the subject seen nearby.
Frame: Central Northern Italian, first half of the 16th century, Mannerist tabernacle style, purchased in 2013 with funds donated by Andrew Sisson
Artwork Details
Place/s of Execution
Italy
Accession Number
2011.330
Department
International Painting
This digital record has been made available on NGV Collection Online through the generous support of Digitisation Champion Ms Carol Grigor through Metal Manufactures Limited
Frame
The Correggio Madonna and Child with infant Saint John the Baptist, c.1514-15, was acquired in 2011. It came with a frame that had been fitted in London at the time of sale.(above) The frame is carved and gilded, in the form of strongly articulated vines and leaves. One section lacks the bunches of grapes that appear on the other three and it is reasonable to assume the frame has been cut down from a larger format and in some way altered to fit the painting. The frame is deep in section and formed a substantial decorative edge around the painting. When the painting was cleaned and restored in 2012-13 a re-assessment of the framing was made. Correggio designed a number of frames for large altar compositions, these taking the form of Tabernacle frames. Several are still in existence. Using this knowledge – a small scale tabernacle frame was sought to reframe the NGV acquisition.
Small scale tabernacle frames from particular regional areas of Italy form a select group and are rarely for sale. An early sixteenth century tabernacle style frame from Northern Italy was found in London. The frame was a very close fit to the painting – requiring a thin in-fill strip on each vertical of the sight edge. The frame is likely to be slightly later than the painting (perhaps around 1530), reflecting mannerist tendencies in the disconnected columns and broken pediment, it nevertheless formed an interesting relationship with the painting. After considerable reflection and discussion the frame was purchased in order to present the painting as near as possible to the way it would have been presented in the sixteenth century.
Frame Details
Framemaker
Unknown - 16th century
Date
c.1530
Materials
Wood, gold leaf and paint.