Artwork
The Holy Family
The Holy Family is a paint painting by the High Renaissance artist Palma Vecchio. It dates from 1515 and is held in the collection of the Gemäldegalerie Berlin.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The inclusion of these three specific figures establishes the iconographic identity of the piece as a standard representation of the Holy Family.
Palma Vecchio's 1515 panel painting depicts the Holy Family, a central subject in religious art. The composition features the Virgin Mary, the Christ Child, and Saint Joseph as the primary figures.
As a work of religious genre, the image represents the domestic unity of Jesus's immediate family, a common theme intended for devotional contemplation during the Renaissance. The inclusion of these three specific figures establishes the iconographic identity of the piece as a standard representation of the Holy Family.
Technique & Style
Executed in 1515, this religious painting by Palma Vecchio utilizes paint applied to a poplar panel support. The work depicts the Holy Family, featuring the figures of Mary, the Christ Child, and Joseph. While the specific handling of the brushwork and the current physical condition of the panel are not detailed in the available records, the choice of poplar wood aligns with traditional materials for Italian panel painting of the early sixteenth century. The composition focuses strictly on the sacred group, adhering to the conventions of the religious genre.
History & Provenance
The painting known as The Holy Family was executed in 1515 by Palma Vecchio, a Venetian artist active during the High Renaissance. It was created on a poplar panel using tempera and oil pigments, depicting the Virgin Mary, the infant Christ, and Saint Joseph in a domestic grouping characteristic of the period. The work entered the collection of the Gemäldegalerie Berlin, where it remains on public view as part of the museum’s holdings of early sixteenth‑century religious paintings.
The Holy Family by Palma Vecchio, dated 1515, is held by the Gemäldegalerie Berlin. The work is catalogued in the museum's collection and is recorded as a religious painting executed in paint on poplar panel, depicting Mary, the Christ Child, and Joseph.
No exhibition history is documented in the available sources.
Overview
The Holy Family is a painting from 1515, attributed to the Venetian High Renaissance artist Palma Vecchio. The work is a representation of the Christian Holy Family, set against a natural outdoor backdrop.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Palma Vecchio (c. 1480 – 30 July 1528), born Jacopo Palma, also known as Jacopo Negretti, was a Venetian painter of the Italian High Renaissance. He is called Palma Vecchio in English and Palma il Vecchio in Italian…
- The Holy Family
The Nativity
Adoration of the Christ Child
Holy Family
Adoration of the Christ Child, with Sts Barbara and Martin
Virgin and Child
The Worship of the Shepherds
Sfânta Familie
The Adoration of the Shepherds
The Mystic Marriage of Saint Catherine
The Adoration of the Kings
Adoration of the Shepherds