The Virgin and Child 2
Artist: Workshop of Giovanni Bellini (Italian, c. 1430/1435 - 1516)
Original Dimensions: 31 1/2" x 25 1/2"
Location: National Gallery of Art, London
About Artwork: (About 1490-1500) "Small-scale images of the Virgin Mary and Christ Child made for private worship were one of Bellini’s specialities, and there was intense demand for them. Bellini had a large workshop of assistants who worked under his supervision, producing paintings in his style. This is one of those works, which is now, unfortunately, in poor condition. It adopts the landscape view and the curtain backdrop found in several of Bellini’s own images of this kind (including one in our collection). Other elements are characteristic of Bellini’s works: the infant’s nakedness; the marble parapet separating us from the holy figures; and the cartellino (a piece of parchment or paper depicted within the painting) with Bellini’s now-damaged signature included as proof of his design and supervision of the work. The marble ledge is probably intended to recall Christ’s tomb – a reminder that, according to Christians, he redeemed humanity through his death in adulthood." - (National Gallery of Art, London)

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