Virgin and Child
Lippi-Pesellino Imitator·c. 1465
Historical Context
This Virgin and Child by a Lippi-Pesellino imitator from around 1465 reflects the enormous popularity of Filippo Lippi and Francesco Pesellino's devotional compositions in mid-fifteenth-century Florence. Both painters produced tender, intimate Madonnas that were widely copied by their workshop assistants and followers. The demand for such devotional images from Florentine households sustained a productive industry of high-quality copies and variants.
Technical Analysis
The oil and tempera on panel follows the established Lippi-Pesellino formulas with warm, golden coloring and gentle, rounded figure modeling. The careful rendering of the Madonna's veil and the tender interaction between mother and child demonstrate competent execution within the Florentine devotional painting tradition.
Provenance
French collection or dealer [based on French customs stamp on reverse]. Barbazon Gallery [according to annotation on handlist of 1936 Arts Club exhibition; copy in curatorial file]; Joseph Winterbotham, Jr. (d. 1954), Burlington, Vermont, by 1936 [lent by him to the Arts Club 1936 as Florentine Primitive]; bequeathed to the Art Institute, 1954.
