The Virgin and Child Painting Essay Example

The virgin and child painting has been done by both Antoniazzo Romano and Rogier van der Weyden who were painters in the 15th century. Both paintings represent the image of Mary, the Mother of Christ holding Christ on her chest. The two paintings are very famous and are stored at the Museum of Houston of Fine Arts. The paper aims at comparing the artistic works of these two great painters of the fifteenth century. Both of them were excellent in painting during the Northern Renaissance are greatly honored as the work is cherished and stored. However, the type of art used in each painting is unique and significant for each culture if the painter depending on where he came from. The comparison will analyze and provide the point of differences and emotional touching represented by the two paintings. Therefore, analysis of the works of both Rogier van Weyden and Antonazzio Romano helps distinguish the Italian art of painting and the Netherland art of painting as depicted in the Virgin and Child.

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To begin with, Weyden's art of painting is full of rich content representing the subject matter of the painting. The artistic work is more of religion, altarpieces, and painting of portraits. His style of work mainly attracts religious people and is instrumental in the establishment of religion. Therefore, his work is a prerequisite representation of life as he represents the facial representation of the picture which may even be depicted by close observation. The colors used by him are rich warm and uses different shades which are unique since they have not been repeated; instead, their use is varied (Yinshan 1). The art is compassionate and expresses grief and naturalism which is an excellent indication of the Netherlands style of painting. "The work can be compared to paintings of the Gothic art since the portraits have unbalanced contours and reveal certain emotions of the gothic art." In general, his painting of the Virgin and Child is very artistic, creative and represents emotional testimony of the subject matter. The painting represents the theme of pain, happiness since the birth of Christ was very significant and unique for the Christians.

The painting of virgin and child greatly represents his strength in drawing, design, and skills in handling oil paint. The paint was very devotional and was much praised and highly reviewed as very artistic in the fifteenth century. The painting was a model of spiritual work as it was considered to be work of miracles. The painting represents the contemporary of Dutch painting. The bust of the Virgin and Child appear in front of the gilded background of the spot, and Mary's golden halo is set against it. She is wearing a red dress and a blue gold veil. Her bare breasts are partially covered with a transparent scarf. She held her arms in her arms while staring down with a dreamy expression. This little naked baby was loosely wrapped in white cloth. On the one hand, he holds a wild pansy or heart, a symbol - due to its three colors: white, yellow and blue - trinity. The painting has an arched top and is contained in a monolithic frame made of Baltic oak. With its small format and intimate character, this piece is undoubtedly a private offering. The image is byzantine as it represents the mother relationship with a child. The mother is breastfeeding his child who symbolizes the role of a mother in a baby's life.

On the other hand, Antonio Romano painting is quite intense and is very Italian painting. Romano's works show the transition of art into the Baroque era. Italian art showed a high-quality renaissance in painting. His work is more linear; the art is particular and shows differentiation of figures. The work is exact, independent, clear and unambiguous fading to minimize the amount of lighting. The art used was high specified contouring as compared to the one used by Weyden. The use of linearly perspectives, Romano avoids the use of shades to indicate shadows between the mother and child. The paint used tempera and gold leaf to show artwork. The artwork is very accurate as the use of tempera and gold leaf represent accurateness and separation of figures in the painting. The art is very still, actively showing the Italian culture of art which is firm and steadfast in representing the subject matter. The view of the painting indicates a three-dimensional view of the paint compared to other paints in history.

The painting indicates a strong relationship between the Virgin and the child. The Virgin is the mother to the child, and the child is still on her body. Romano shows this through the body language of the Virgin and child and how they embrace each other in the painting. The subject matter depicted in the painting is a mother's love for her child. Therefore this may quite represent how a mother loves his or her children and always holds them in her blossom or arms. The mother provides support and comfort a mother provides to his child. However, unlike in the painting by Weyden, Romano's paint does not indicate intense emotions, but observers of the picture have to study the body language of the characters in the paint and understand the theme. The art represents the way people lived during the 14th and the 15th century. The feeling brought by the virgin and the child in Romano's painting indicates their superiority. The art is symbolic of the mother of Christ, Mary, and Jesus, the child. The two are noble people in the kingdom of God, and the way Romano shows in the painting represents this aspect of them (Master of Straus Madonna Italian (Florence) 1340).

Consequently, the analysis shows that both of the paintings are representative of the Byzantine style of art which was common in the 15th century. Both of the paintings are very thematic and educative the cultures of the 14th and 15th century. They show how religion was valued and how people valued Mary and Christ as represented in the picture through the Virgin and Child. Both artists use different features and painting material to represent the same image, where Romano uses gold leaf and tempera while Weyden used oil to make the painting. Both paints indicate emotion since Weyden's painting indicates happiness that exists between a child and mother while the painting by Romano shows how the child feels when embraced by her mother.

On the contrary, the paints also indicate different themes. The paint by Weyden represents religion as it shows that the painting was regarded as very useful for early believers who regarded Christ as their savior. The theme in Romano's painting shows the theme of the relationship between a mother and her child. The paint also represents the respect people have towards the holy family; the virgin and child represent people who are much respected in the world, especially for the Christians. The direction of the paintings indicates nobility of the two. Moreover the two pieces of art are a distinct depictive culture of its origin. Romano shows that Italian art is very architectural as there is the essence of linearity in his painting and avoids using shadows of the child on the virgin. The picture is very contoured as it is clear to represent the subject matter. Weyden, on the other hand, represents the Netherland art which is also unique. They use oil in painting, unlike the Italian art which uses tempera and gold leaf in painting.

Conclusion

All in all, the paintings represent great works of art. Although they come from different cultures, indicate the image of a mother taking care of her child. The picture shows the relationship between a mother and child. The painting also represents a religion which dates back to the birth of Christ in early times. The paintings are rich in culture and depict how the northern renaissance was inspired through painting. These great works of art are preserved for their significance and uniqueness in the art of painting.

Works Cited

Antoniazzo Romano Italian (Roman) c.1430-1512 Virgin and Child with Donor, c. 1475-80. Tempura and gold leaf on wood The Edith A. and Percy S. Straus Collection 44.55

Rogier van der Weyden Netherlandish, c. 1399/1400-1464 Virgin and Child, after 1454Oil on wood The Edith A. and Percy S. Straus Collection 44.535

Master of the Straus Madonna Italian (Florence), c. 1340-50 Virgin and Child, c. 1395-1400. Tempera and gold leaf on wood The Edith A. and Percy S, Straus Collection 44.565

Yinshan Studio blog. Roger van der Weyden, Virgin and Child (Houston Museum of Fine Arts, USA, 2019. Available from: http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_14b3d4d590102ys8w.html (Accessed March 10 2019).