Florence, perhaps even more than Venice or Rome, is considered the epitome of the Renaissance, the era in which mankind entered the so-called modern age and left the Middle Ages behind. The city on the Arno, which had become rich through textile processing and banking, flourished from the 13th century onwards. However, a devastating plague epidemic in 1348 led to a dramatic decline in population and a severe economic crisis. During this time, the inhabitants’ need for comfort and protection grew. This led to an impressive phenomenon: those who could afford it coveted a small-format image of the Madonna for private worship at home. The sculpture collection’s special exhibition “Close to the Madonna. Reliefs and Paintings of the Florentine Renaissance” from Saturday, 23. November 2024, to Saturday, 27. April 2025, is dedicated to these special objects.
Image above: Michele di Bartolomeo Michelozzi, gen. Michelozzo (zugeschrieben), Madonna mit Kind, um 1440 © Skulpturensammlung, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Foto: Jürgen Lange
Although there were already small-format panel paintings for the home, they were very expensive. Therefore, from the early 15th century, workshops such as that of Lorenzo Ghiberti (around 1378-1455) began to produce reliefs from inexpensive clay or plaster, which could also be reproduced by casting. Painted and, if necessary, provided with a carved wooden frame, decorative objects were created that were also affordable for less well-off circles. The preferred subject was Mary with the infant Jesus. Instead of the enthroned Queen of Heaven, a loving mother was shown intimately united with her child in an emphatically human and emotional way.
Over time, the production of such Madonna reliefs became a branch of business in its own right, with the compositions mostly coming from important sculptors and the color versions being executed in the city’s most renowned painting studios. This resulted in some of the most touching creations of Italian Renaissance sculpture.
In the 19th century, when it became fashionable to decorate in the Renaissance style, these Madonna reliefs were particularly sought after, which is why they were often forged. It is therefore all the more gratifying that four impressive originals of such Madonna reliefs have been preserved in the Dresden Sculpture Collection – almost unnoticed until now.
Extensively restored and researched, they can now be shown again after many decades of oblivion. They are by Michelozzo, Buggiano and Nanni di Bartolo. Probably the most spectacular of them is the stucco Madonna designed by Desiderio da Settignano (around 1430-1464) and painted in color by Neri di Bicci (1418/1420-1492). These four pieces are important discoveries, because even if there were once many such Madonna reliefs, originals are rare today.
In the context of painting, graphic art and arts and crafts of the period, the exhibition shows how the theme of the Madonna and Child was transformed in Florence from around 1410 into a profoundly human pictorial task full of emotion, culminating in Raphael’s famous works.
Precious panel paintings from the 13th and 14th centuries introduce the public to the theme of the private devotional image, while the focus is on works from the 15th century. In addition, the exhibition extends into the 19th century to show how the theme of the Madonna and motherhood has been reinterpreted time and again. An important aspect is also devoted to restoration.
The exhibition features around 50 works, including loans from the Bode Museum in Berlin, the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Dijon and the Lindenau Museum in Altenburg.
The catalog “Close to the Madonna. Reliefs and Paintings of the Florentine Renaissance” is published by Sandstein Verlag. Published by the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Holger Jacob-Friesen and Claudia Kryza-Gersch, 104 pages, 91 color illustrations, ISBN 978-3-95498-843-3, 19,80 €.
WHEN?
Exhibition dates: Saturday, 23. November 2024 – Saturday, 27. April 2025
Daily 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday closed
WHERE?
Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden
Taschenberg 2
01067 Dresden
COSTS?
regular 14 EUR, reduced 10,50 EUR, under 17 free, from 10 pers. 12,50 EUR
