The Madonna in art . li inthe Lombard and Florentine schools re-spectively. Luinis picture is one whichreadily touches the heart. The Virginunites the sweetness of fresh, young 192 THE MADONNA IN ART. motherhood with womanly dignity ofcharacter. Her smile has nothing ofmystery in it; it is simply sweet andwinning. The Christ-child is a lovelyboy, steadying himself against his moth-ers breast, and yet with an air of self-reliance. The two understand each otherwell. One could hardly imagine two moredissimilar spirits than Luini and Botti-celli. To Luinis Virgin, the conscious-ness of her sons gr
The Madonna in art . li inthe Lombard and Florentine schools re-spectively. Luinis picture is one whichreadily touches the heart. The Virginunites the sweetness of fresh, young 192 THE MADONNA IN ART. motherhood with womanly dignity ofcharacter. Her smile has nothing ofmystery in it; it is simply sweet andwinning. The Christ-child is a lovelyboy, steadying himself against his moth-ers breast, and yet with an air of self-reliance. The two understand each otherwell. One could hardly imagine two moredissimilar spirits than Luini and Botti-celli. To Luinis Virgin, the conscious-ness of her sons greatness is a proudhonor, accepted seriously, but gladly. ToBotticelli, on the other hand, it brings aprofound melancholy. This is so markedthat at first sight almost every one isrepelled by Botticelli, and yields only afterlong familiarity to the mysterious fascina-tion of the sad-eyed Madonna, who holdsher babe almost listlessly, as her headdroops with the weight of her expression is the same whatever her. Luini. — Madonna with St. Barbara and St. Anthony THE MADONNA AS WITNESS. IQ5 attitude, when she presses her babe toher bosom as the Mater Amabilis (inthe Borghese Gallery at Rome, in theDresden Gallery, and Louvre), or when,as witness to her sons destiny, she holdshim forth to be seen of men. It is inthis last capacity that her mood is mostintelligible. She seems oppressed ratherthan humbled by her honors; reluctant,rather than glad to assume them; yet,with proud dignity, determined to doher part, though her heart break in thedoing. Her nature is too deep to acceptthe joy without counting the cost, andher vision looks beyond Bethlehem toCalvary. This is well illustrated in thepicture of the Berlin The queen 1 The Berlin Gallery contains two Enthroned Madon-nas attributed to Botticelli. The description here, and onpage 40 makes it clear that the reference is to the picturenumbered 102. This does not appear in Berensons list ofBotticellis works, but is
Size: 1307px × 1912px
Photo credit: © The Reading Room / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade18, booksubjectmaryblessedvirginsaint
