Virgin and Child
Relief
1487-1488 (made)
1487-1488 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This relief in blue and white tin-glazed terracotta is made by Andrea della Robbia in Florence in 1487-88.
The relief appears to have been commissioned by Gabriele di Cambio de' Medici, whose marriage to Lucrezia di Alessandro Rondinelli took place in 1487-88. The style of the relief is related to that of Andrea del Verroccio.
The Della Robbia family was an Italian family of sculptors and potters. They were active in Florence from the early 15th century and elsewhere in Italy and France well into the 16th.
Luca della Robbia founded the family sculpture workshop in Florence and was regarded by contemporaries as a leading artistic innovator, comparable to Donatello and Masaccio. The influence of antique art and his characteristic liveliness and charm are evident in such works as the marble singing-gallery for Florence Cathedral. He is credited with the invention of the tin-glazed terracotta sculpture for which the family became well known.
His nephew Andrea della Robbia, who inherited the workshop, tended to use more complex compositions and polychrome glazing rather than the simple blue-and-white schemes favoured by his uncle.
Trained as a marble sculptor in the studio of his uncle Luca, Andrea della Robbia also became an excellent modeller, unrivalled in his ability to capture the life of his subjects in glazed clay.
The relief appears to have been commissioned by Gabriele di Cambio de' Medici, whose marriage to Lucrezia di Alessandro Rondinelli took place in 1487-88. The style of the relief is related to that of Andrea del Verroccio.
The Della Robbia family was an Italian family of sculptors and potters. They were active in Florence from the early 15th century and elsewhere in Italy and France well into the 16th.
Luca della Robbia founded the family sculpture workshop in Florence and was regarded by contemporaries as a leading artistic innovator, comparable to Donatello and Masaccio. The influence of antique art and his characteristic liveliness and charm are evident in such works as the marble singing-gallery for Florence Cathedral. He is credited with the invention of the tin-glazed terracotta sculpture for which the family became well known.
His nephew Andrea della Robbia, who inherited the workshop, tended to use more complex compositions and polychrome glazing rather than the simple blue-and-white schemes favoured by his uncle.
Trained as a marble sculptor in the studio of his uncle Luca, Andrea della Robbia also became an excellent modeller, unrivalled in his ability to capture the life of his subjects in glazed clay.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Virgin and Child (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Blue and white enamelled terracotta, with polychrome enamelled terracotta border and console |
| Brief description | Relief, the Virgin and Child, blue and white enamelled terracotta, by Andrea della Robbia, Florence, 1487-1488. |
| Physical description | The Virgin is represented in full-length seated and turned slightly to the left, presenting her right breast to the Child, who sits on a cushion on her right knee. The frame is composed of a border of leaves, fruit, wheat-ears and flowers, terminating above in two scrolls. The lower edge of the console is formed by two cornucopias filled with fruit, leaves, nuts and flowers, with, between them, a laurel wreath containing a shield with the arms of Medici impaling those of Rondinelli. |
| Dimensions |
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| Object history | Purchased from the Gigli-Campana collection, £200. |
| Historical context | The relief appears to have been commissioned by Gabriele di Cambio de' Medici, whose marriage to Lucrezia di Alessandro Rondinelli took place in 1487-88. The style of the relief is related to that of Andrea del Verroccio. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | This relief in blue and white tin-glazed terracotta is made by Andrea della Robbia in Florence in 1487-88. The relief appears to have been commissioned by Gabriele di Cambio de' Medici, whose marriage to Lucrezia di Alessandro Rondinelli took place in 1487-88. The style of the relief is related to that of Andrea del Verroccio. The Della Robbia family was an Italian family of sculptors and potters. They were active in Florence from the early 15th century and elsewhere in Italy and France well into the 16th. Luca della Robbia founded the family sculpture workshop in Florence and was regarded by contemporaries as a leading artistic innovator, comparable to Donatello and Masaccio. The influence of antique art and his characteristic liveliness and charm are evident in such works as the marble singing-gallery for Florence Cathedral. He is credited with the invention of the tin-glazed terracotta sculpture for which the family became well known. His nephew Andrea della Robbia, who inherited the workshop, tended to use more complex compositions and polychrome glazing rather than the simple blue-and-white schemes favoured by his uncle. Trained as a marble sculptor in the studio of his uncle Luca, Andrea della Robbia also became an excellent modeller, unrivalled in his ability to capture the life of his subjects in glazed clay. |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | 7630-1861 |
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| Record created | January 21, 2003 |
| Record URL |
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