Virgin and Child

Description The use of forceful chiaroscuro (modeling in light and shade) is characteristic of Tiepolo's images of the Madonna and Child that were intended for private devotion. There is an element of melancholy in the way in which the Virgin embraces her son. This suggests that they both perceive his future fate, and the motif alludes to the traditional image of the Pietà, in which the Virgin mourns over the body of her dead son. She is often shown near or against a column, which here is meant to convey her nobility and strength. These small images for private use are primarily from early in Tiepolo's career, before he was in great demand for large-scale commissions.

Conservation

Date	Description	Narrative
8/01/1977	Treatment	cleaned
5/12/1978	Examination	examined for condition

Exhibitions

• The Christmas Story in the Language of Art. The Washington County Museum, Hagerstown. 1950.
• Tiepolos in America. Birmingham Museum of Art, Birmingham; Springfield Museums, Springfield. 1978.
• Tiepolo Unveiled: The Restoration of a Masterpiece. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. 1996.

Provenance Don Marcello Massarenti Collection, Rome [date and mode of acquisition unknown] [1897 catalogue: no. 460, as Luca Giordiano]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1902, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.

Credit Acquired by Henry Walters with the Massarenti Collection, 1902