The Visitation

1504

From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art

Renaissance Renaissance Allegory Visitation

Dominant colour

The Visitation is a 1504 by Albrecht Dürer, a Renaissance work, depicting Visitation, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.

Who painted this?: Albrecht Dürer
When & what style?: 1504 · Renaissance
Where can I see it?: Cleveland Museum of Art

About this work

This painting shows two women meeting, likely Mary and her cousin Elizabeth. They seem happy to see each other. The scene is from a story about Mary and her pregnancy, and it's part of a series of woodcuts. The artist tells this story in a simple way, focusing on the people and their feelings. You can learn more about this style by looking at the work of artist: Albrecht Dürer (German, 1471–1528).

The story of this work

Overview

These eight woodcuts (1959.99.8-15) progress from Gabriel’s announcement to Mary that she would bear the Son of God, to the events of her early motherhood and beyond. This included the joy of sharing her pregnancy with her cousin Elizabeth, Jesus’s birth, and the subsequent arrival of the magi. After Jesus’s circumcision and presentation at the temple the Holy Family fled to Egypt to avoid Herod and stayed there for several years. The seemingly out of place last scene shows a glimpse of their daily life in Egypt as Joseph continues his carpentry and Mary spins wool. The Holy Family is…

Read the full account in the museum source.