Mary, Infant Christ and Saint John
1527–85
Medium
Pen and ink
Dimensions
14 1/16 x 10 3/4in. (35.7 x 27.3cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Cephas G. Thompson, 1887
Accession Number
87.12.9
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the intimate drawing *Mary, Infant Christ and John*, Luca Cambiaso captures a tender moment from Christian iconography: the Virgin Mary cradling infant Jesus alongside the young Saint John the Baptist. Created during Cambiaso's lifetime (1527–85), this reflects the devotional art prevalent in 16th-century Italy, such scenes emphasized maternal love and the sacred bond between these holy figures. Cambiaso, a prolific Genoese artist, explored biblical themes in his sketches, making this piece a window into Renaissance religious devotion. Executed in pen and ink on a modest scale—14 1/16 x 10...
About the Artist
Luca Cambiaso · 1527–1585
Luca Cambiaso (1527–1585) was an Italian painter and draftsman who dominated artistic life in Genoa during the second half of the sixteenth century and became one of the most innovative draftsmen of the Late Renaissance. Born in Moneglia near Genoa, he trained under his father, the painter Giovanni Cambiaso, and demonstrated precocious talent, reportedly completing his first public fresco commissi...