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Comparing Two Italian Paintings: Madonna And Child

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I traveled to the National Gallery of Art in DC to observe the impact the Renaissance had on the style and characteristics artists would use in their paintings going forward. In order to do so, I decided to compare two Italian paintings; one during the time of Renaissance, and the other predating the movement. While searching for the paintings I would compare, I stumbled across a painting in between the times of these two paintings, and I decided to compare that painting as well. To make the most accurate comparisons, I focused on the portrayals of the Madonna and Child, as this seemed to be very prevalent throughout the Medieval and Renaissance eras.

The first depiction of Madonna and Child I analyzed (Image 1), was painted by Margaritone d’Arezzo in about 1240 AD. It appeared to be very bland, with most of its few colors gravitating toward the color brown. The prominence of the blue in Madonna’s dress was the only thing that separated her from …show more content…

This painting also featured Saint Peter and Saint John the Evangelist. Upon first glance, the painting seemed much more realistic than the other painting by d’Arezzo. This could be attributed to the painter’s use of shadows to portray a small amount of depth. Additionally, the painting was much more vivid and colorful than that of d’Arezzo’s painting, which added to its realistic properties. For instance, the blue color of Madonna’s outfit allowed her stand out when placed upon the gold colored background. Also, the small details made the people seem more lifelike. An example would be the fine detail in the fabric, and how it folded and rippled like that of a real piece of fabric. Finally, the more accurate human proportions made the painting more believable. For example, the baby, unlike the other painting, was chubby and did not yet have developed facial features, which made it seem like you were looking at an actual

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