The Virgin and Child
1455
tempera
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
1455
tempera
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
The Virgin and Child is a 1455 tempera by Lippi and Pesellino Imitator, a Early Renaissance work, held at Victoria and Albert Museum.
This shows Mary in a red robe holding baby Jesus. Soft light falls on her face and his bare chest. The gold background is flat, like a sheet of metal. The artist copied a famous Lippi design but added their own touches. Tiny details—like the fold in Mary’s sleeve—look almost real. This was likely made after Pesellino died in 1457. See it in person at the Victoria and Albert Museum.
On a gold punched background, the Virgin supports the Christ Child, who stands on a parapet before her while holding a pomegranate seed; a pomegranate atop a pedestal to the right serves as a symbol of Christ’s future resurrection. The composition reflects a 15th-century Florentine devotional image likely made for private use, drawing on a type popularized by Pesellino and Fra Filippo Lippi. The pomegranate’s association with resurrection underscores the painting’s religious significance within contemporary practices of personal devotion and protection.
Read the full account in the museum source.
This pair borrowed the graceful style of early Italian painters to craft devotional panels full of soft colors and flowing folds.
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