The ''Medici Madonna'' is a marble sculpture carved by the Italian Renaissance master
Michelangelo Buonarroti
Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (; 6 March 1475 – 18 February 1564), known as Michelangelo (), was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was in ...
that measures about 88.98 inches (226 cm) in height. Dating from 1521 to 1534, the sculpture is a piece of the altar decoration of the ''
Sagrestia Nuova'' in the Basilica of
San Lorenzo
San Lorenzo is the Italian and Spanish name for Lawrence of Rome, Saint Lawrence, the 3rd-century Christian martyr, and may refer to:
Places Argentina
* San Lorenzo, Santa Fe
* San Lorenzo Department, Chaco
* Monte San Lorenzo, a mountain on t ...
,
Florence
Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico ...
.
The work, according to Michelangelo's letters and other documents, was one of the first works begun for the decoration of the ''Sagrestia Vecchia'' (Old Sacristy), as early as 1521. In 1526 it was still incomplete and in 1534, when Michelangelo moved to
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus ( legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
, it was left in the current unfinished state and moved to the current location by
Niccolò Tribolo
Niccolò di Raffaello di Niccolò dei Pericoli, called "Il Tribolo" (1500 – 7 September 1550) was an Italian Mannerist artist in the service of Cosimo I de' Medici in his natal city of Florence.
Life
Niccolò di Raffaello began as an apprent ...
.
The ''Medici Madonna'' depicts a scene of the infant Jesus Christ sitting in the lap of the Virgin Mary and facing away from the viewer. Christ is attempting to nurse from the Virgin Mother, who by every indication appears to be denying her breast to her child. The Virgin Mary is positioned sitting with her right arm behind her and she is gripping the edge of her seat and then her left hand rests on Christ’s arm but is in no way securing him to her or offering an embrace. Another indication of the Virgin Mother denying the infant Christ of her breast is shown through the girdled chiton garment she is wearing that completely conceals her. There has been speculation that a Roman copy of the 5th century statue of Penelope influences the pose in this sculpture.
Several preparatory drawings (at the
British Museum
The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
and the
Albertina
The Albertina is a museum in the Innere Stadt (First District) of Vienna, Austria. It houses one of the largest and most important print rooms in the world with approximately 65,000 drawings and approximately 1 million old master prints, as well ...
) show a less compact composition, in which the Madonna's legs were parallel to each other. The composition is somewhat similar to the ''
Madonna of the Stairs
The ''Madonna of the Stairs'' (or ''Madonna of the Steps'') is a relief sculpture by Michelangelo in the Casa Buonarroti, Florence. It was sculpted around 1490, when Michelangelo was about fifteen. This and the ''Battle of the Centaurs'' were Mic ...
'', with the Virgin sitting on nearly cubic block and breastfeeding the Child. The latter is turning his body towards his mother, hiding the face from the seer.
Through Michelangelo’s personal writings, letters, and poetry that include recollections of his wet nurse it is known that Michelangelo was very emotionally engaged to the motherhood of Mary, relating the Virgin Mother to his own wet nurse. It is believed that although the work was commissioned, the ''Medici Madonna'' is largely tied to his own deep rooted personal issues.
See also
*
List of works by Michelangelo
The following is a list of works of painting, sculpture and architecture by the Italian Renaissance artist Michelangelo. Lost works are included, but not commissions that Michelangelo never made. Michelangelo also left many drawings, sketches, and ...
References
Bibliography
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External links
{{Michelangelo, sculpture
1520s sculptures
Sculptures by Michelangelo
Marble sculptures in Italy