''Charity with Four Children'' also called Charity With Four Putti
chuderis a sculpture by the Italian artist
Gian Lorenzo Bernini
Gian Lorenzo (or Gianlorenzo) Bernini (, ; ; Italian Giovanni Lorenzo; 7 December 1598 – 28 November 1680) was an Italians, Italian sculptor and Italian architect, architect. While a major figure in the world of architecture, he was more prom ...
. Executed between 1627 and 1628, the work is housed in the
Vatican Museums
The Vatican Museums (; ) are the public museums of the Vatican City. They display works from the immense collection amassed by the Catholic Church and the papacy throughout the centuries, including several of the best-known Roman sculptures and ...
in
Vatican City
Vatican City, officially the Vatican City State (; ), is a Landlocked country, landlocked sovereign state and city-state; it is enclaved within Rome, the capital city of Italy and Bishop of Rome, seat of the Catholic Church. It became inde ...
. The small
terracotta
Terracotta, also known as terra cotta or terra-cotta (; ; ), is a clay-based non-vitreous ceramic OED, "Terracotta""Terracotta" MFA Boston, "Cameo" database fired at relatively low temperatures. It is therefore a term used for earthenware obj ...
sculpture represents ''Charity'' breast-feeding a child, with three other children playing. The work includes an imprint of Bernini's thumbprint in the clay.
Background
The sculpture is an allegorical group, and was created as a model for the tomb of Pope Urban VIII.
It is sixteen inches high, is made from
terracotta
Terracotta, also known as terra cotta or terra-cotta (; ; ), is a clay-based non-vitreous ceramic OED, "Terracotta""Terracotta" MFA Boston, "Cameo" database fired at relatively low temperatures. It is therefore a term used for earthenware obj ...
clay, and represents ''Charity'' breast-feeding a child, with three other children playing. Its creation date is uncertain: Raggio dates the sculpture's execution to between 1627 and 1628, although others have suggested it may have been created closer to 1630,
or not later than 1634.
There is an imprint of Bernini's thumbprint in the clay.
History
The work is housed in the
Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana in the Vatican Museums in Vatican City.
It was included in the touring exhibition ''Saint Peter and the Vatican: The Legacy of the Popes'', which opened in
Fort Lauderdale
Fort Lauderdale ( ) is a coastal city located in the U.S. state of Florida, north of Miami along the Atlantic Ocean. It is the county seat of and most populous city in Broward County with a population of 182,760 at the 2020 census, making it ...
in August 2003.
One reviewer called it "The most artistically rewarding work in the show...this delicate sculpture of a mother and infant is alive with movement and human feeling. It possesses an intimacy that comes from the actual touch of Bernini's hand; on the back, you can see the indentations his fingers made in the clay."
In 2012 the sculpture featured in ''Bernini: Sculpting in Clay'' at the
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...
, New York. It was the earliest work included in the show.
See also
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List of works by Gian Lorenzo Bernini
The following is a list of works of sculpture, architecture, and painting by the Italian Baroque artist Gian Lorenzo Bernini. The numbering follows Rudolph Wittkower's Catalogue, published in 1966 in ''Gian Lorenzo Bernini: The Sculptor of the Roma ...
Notes
References
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External links
Web Gallery of Art*
1620s sculptures
Sculptures by Gian Lorenzo Bernini
Terracotta sculptures
Sculptures of children in Vatican City
Sculptures in the Vatican Museums
Sculptures of women in Vatican City
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