Artwork
Virgin and Child
Virgin and Child is a tempera painting by the Byzantine icon painting artist Barnaba da Modena. It dates from 1360 and is held in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston.
About this work
Technique & Style
Created by Barnaba da Modena around 1360, this religious painting is executed in tempera on a panel support. The work measures 100 cm in height and 63 cm in width. As a typical example of the artist's output in this medium, it depicts the Virgin Mary and the Christ Child within a formal composition characteristic of the period's religious art classifications.
History & Provenance
The available sources confirm its location within this specific American institution but do not provide an inventory or accession number.
The painting Virgin and Child by Barnaba da Modena is held in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston. Created in 1360, the work is executed in tempera on panel and measures 100 cm in height by 63 cm in width. The available sources confirm its location within this specific American institution but do not provide an inventory or accession number. Furthermore, no records regarding the exhibition history of this specific panel are present in the provided documentation.
Overview
This devotional panel, painted around 1360 by the Italian artist Barnaba da Modena, presents the Virgin Mary holding the infant Christ. Executed in tempera, it belongs to the mid-14th-century tradition of sacred images produced for private prayer or altarpiece use. The work is now preserved in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
Subject & Meaning
The composition follows established Byzantine iconographic conventions for the Virgin and Child. Mary appears as a solemn, dignified figure, her dark gaze directed toward the viewer with measured gravity, while the Christ Child rests in her arms. The pairing carries theological weight: Mary as the Theotokos (God-bearer) and Christ as both vulnerable infant and divine savior. The figures' calm demeanor and frontal orientation encourage contemplative devotion rather than narrative engagement.
Artist & collection
Artist
Barnaba da Modena (c. 1328-c.1386) was a mid-14th-century Italian painter who painted in the style of Byzantine art. He is considered the first Lombard painter of note and was active in Lombardy, Piedmont, and Pisa in Tuscany.
